IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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M   125 


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S?  144    ■— 
iM    112.0 


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Hiotographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STRKT 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  145S0 

(716)873-4503 


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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historicai  IVIicroreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


^-f^ 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 

The  Instituts  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  *he 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 

L'Institut  a  microfilm*  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  tti  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mAthode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquis  ci-dessous. 

1 

Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 

__ 

Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

1 

Covers  damaged/ 
Couverture  endommagte 

^^ 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagies 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaur^  et/ou  pelliculAe 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restauries  et/ou  pelliculAey 

Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

v/ 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  dicolor^es,  tacheties  ou  piquies 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  giographiques  en  couleur 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d6tach6es 

[— 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 

• 

Showthrough/ 

Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

Transparence 

[7 

Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
Qualit*  inigale  de  I'impression 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relii  avec  d'autres  documents 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplimentaire 

D 


n 


D 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  iiure  serr6e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intirieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajouties 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais.  lorsque  cel»  }t»it  possible  cos  pages  n'ont 
pas  AtA  film^es. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl6mentaircs; 


r~n    Only  edition  available/ 


n 


Seule  Mition  disponibie 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  4ti  fiimies  A  nouveau  de  faqon  A 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  rMuction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

26X 

30X 

y 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


T 

s 
T 

t 

b( 
ri' 
re 
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t: 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

National  Library  of  Canada 


L'eKemplaire  fiim6  fut  reproduit  grflce  A  la 
g6nArosit*  de: 

BibliothAque  nationale  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  —^-(meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t4  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet«  da  I'exemplaire  f ilm«,  et  en 
conformity  aviac  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimie  sont  fiimis  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'imprcMion  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmto  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaltra  sur  la 
dernlAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  6tre 
filmte  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  film6  A  partir 
de  I'angle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nicessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

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■  ■  1 
1  J. 


THE 


NEW.  WORLD: 


■HBBAOINa 


AMERICAN   HISTORY. 


COMPHniMO 


I 
s 


AM  AOOOUMT  OV  TBI  DnOOTKBT  OF  NORTH  AND  SOOTH  AMKRIOAi  OF  THB  rOtnTDINO  OV 

C0L0NIK8  BT  «HZ  SBVEBAI.  KUROFEAN  NATIONS,  1VITU  SEPARATE  HISTORISS 

or  RAOB,  INOLUDINO  THS  TARIOUS  REVOLUTIONS  AND  THR  RRRCTION 

OF  INDEPENDENT  STATES,  TO  THE  PRESENT  TIME, 


BT 


HENRY    HOWARD    BROWNELL,    A.  M. 


'     TWO   VOLUMES  iJV  OJTE.        *^  ^*^   rv  ^ 

VOL.    I.       iO:l:A 

•  HorthBcn  in  Amerlea.— B.  The  Spaniards  In  Ameriost  Kazleo^  Fam,  Ohili.  TImUm, 

Tha  Wait  Xbdlaa,  tto^  with  Spanlih  Amerloan  Bavolutlona. — 8.  Tha  Portacnaaa 

« 
in  Amarlaai  BraiU.— 4.  Tha  Datoh  In  Amartea,  —  8.  Tha  Traneh  in 

Aaarlaa  i  Panada,  Aoadla,  Loolilana,  fto. 


Vm  NDIEB0U8   AND   DITESSmEB   COLOURED    OLUSTRA' 

EXECUTED  IN  THE  BEST  STYLE,  BT  THE  FIRST  ABTISTS  IN  AMERICA. 


NEW  YORK; 
PUBLISHED  BY  GURDON  BILL. 

1858. 


t 


6  /e 

6^^ 


279863 


f     '^ 


ENTKRED     ACCORDINO  TO   ACT  OF  C0N0RBS8    IN   THE    YEAR    185t,  BV 

LUCIUS   STEBBINS, 

l^   THE  CLERK'S    OFFICE  OF  THE   DISTRICT  COURT  OF  MASSACHUSETTS. 


HASTrOIDI 

POUNUKY  OV  SIUS  ANDHl'S  It  SO?l 


W.    a.   WILLIAM* 

Sioa   Pr*t> 


INTRODUCTION. 


V^«^^^<^«^a^tA«>^N^a«H^««>^«^a^B^«i«^AM^>^M*w> 


To  one  inspectiDg  a  map  of  the  Western  Hemisphere,  the  ter- 
ritories of  that  great  division,  adapted  to  a  civilized  population, 
appear  pretty  equally  divided  among  the  representatives  of  three 
European  nations — England,  Spain,  and  Portugal.  France  and 
Holland,  whose  transactions  on  the  same  theatre  of  action  form  a 
considerable  item  in  the  history  of  the  past,  hu\'o  nearly — the  first, 
from  the  insufficiency  of  her  marine,  and  the  second,  from  the  fee- 
bleness of  the  parent  state — lost  the  footing  which  their  early  enter- 
prise attained,  and,  for  the  future,  will  probably  take  but  little  share 
in  the  destinies,  social  or  political,  of  America. 

Of  the  three  races  which  have  finally  succeeded  to  the  vast  inher- 
itance of  the  New  World,  that  of  Portugal,  possessing  the  empire 
of  Brazil — an  empire  embracing,  it  is  probable,  an  ampler  amount 
of  natural  wealth,  and  more  numerous  internal  resources  of  great- 
ness than  any  single  country  on  the  globe — must,  from  the  present 
sparseness  of  population,  and  the  comparatively  general  ignorance 
which  prevails,  be  long  in  attaining  any  thing  like  national  eminence. 

The  colonies  of  Spain,  for.  stn.c  ages  the  most  numerous  and 
valuable  that  had  been  held  by  any  nation  since  the  days  of  Rome, 
after  fruitlessly  enriching  the  mother-country,  and  suflering  great 
oppression  in  return,  nearly  simultaneously  cast  off  the  yoke,  and 
adopted  constitutions  more  or  less  liberal — for  the  most  part,  unfor- 
tunately, only  to  evince,  by  a  chronic  state  of  revolution,  their 
entire  incapacity  for  self-government. 

In  the  Anglo-American  states,  at  the  present  time,  two  experi- 
ments, political  and  social,  the  most  important  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  are  being  tried — the  capacity  for  absolute  self-government 


.  INTKODUCTION. 

of  a  grent  nation,  occupying  a  territory,  from  ita  vastness  of  ex- 
tent, and  diversity  of  climnto,  dependent  entirely  on  moral  causes 
for  the  union  of  its  inliabitanta — and  the  eflect  of  mingling  in  a 
single  commonwealth  a  variety  of  European  races,  each  receiving 
continual  accessions  of  fresh  nationality  from  an  11  precedented  tide 
of  emigration.  Up  to  this  moment,  a  measure  of  succosa  far  greater 
than  the  most  sanguine  could  have  anticipated,  has  attended  both 
of  these  novel  phases  in  the  great  cycle  of  human  destiny.  A 
liberty,  more  nearly  approaching  to  entire  non-restraint  than  any 
of  which  history  affords  an  example,  has  been  found  compatible 
with  the  highest  security  for  person  and  property,  and  even  with  a 
tolerable  permanence  of  national  policy,  both  domestic  and  foreign. 
And,  strange  to  say,  from  the  heterogeneous  elements  so  hurriedly 
thrown  into  contact,  and  still  in  a  state  of  imperfect  fusion,  a 
national  character  is  rapidly  forming,  possessed,  it  is  probable,  of 
stronger  elements  of  greatness  than  could  be  found  in  the  constitu- 
tion of  any  other  people,  ancient  or  modern.  A  universal  mental 
activity — an  inventive  genius,  bolder,  acuter,  and  more  original 
than  has  ever  before  been  developed — a  spirit  of  enterprise  charac- 
terized by  almost  feverish  eagerness  and  industry — yet,  so  far, 
remarkably  free  from  the  imputation  of  aggression — such  are  some 
of  the  prominent  traits  of  a  people,  as  yet  in  comparative  political 
infancy,  and  whose  ultimate  position  and  history  present,  both  to 
calculation  and  imagination,  outlines  vaster  and  bolder  than  any 
which  the  experience  of  the  past  world  can  supply. 


-■m 


CONTENTS. 


PART  I. 


THE   NORTHMEN    IN   AMERICA. 

OIIAPTKH  I.  VAUI 

ANnimT  AborlKlnallUeM;  the  Heandlnavian  Vnyngen;  Dlwovary  of  IceUnd ;  Elr«klheRml;  Dl»- 
oovery  »nd  Hstllemxiil  uraraeiilknd ;  North  America  Mcldantatly  dlKttvervd  by  Blsml  llorluinion ; 
Voyaiia  ur  Latf  EIrekion  t  America  named  VlnlaD>^;  the  Voyage  and  DlteuTerlat  of  Thorvald— 
HtoDeatht  Attanpl  of  Thonteln, 17 

CIIAI'TBH    II. 

Th*  Vuytt*  of  Thorflnn  Karlaeftil;  Wonhip  of  the  0<id  Thur  In  America;  Transient  BaltlemeDli; 
PIfht  with  the  Indian.;  I<i>liirii;  Noble  Conduct  of  DIarnI  arlmolhtin;  Mention  of  Vinland  In 
many  Anoleiit  Cbronlolae;  the  Btorj  uf  Blom  Aabrsiidiun;  loelaodle  Remalm;  a  Coi\)eoturtd 
WelihOuiuny, « » 

PART  II. 
THE   SPANIARDS   IN  AMERICA. 

TUI  DISCOVERIES  OF  COLUMBUS  AMD  SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  WEST   INDIES. 

ORAPTaH    I. 

Early  Uh  of  Oulumbua— Hla  Rxperlene*  and  Attalnneoti;  General  Paialon  (br  DIacovery ;  Forma- 
tion of  hli  Scheme;  Negotiations  wllh  the  Court  of  Portugal ;  Treachery  of  the  King;  Columbui 
In  Spain— Ilia  Poverty ;  LaRablda;  Applloatt.in  to  tba  Lourt  of  lilpaln;  Delays;  the  Council  of 
Bala inanta— Ignorance  and  Bigotry  uf  Its  Members, • S9 

OBAPTSn   II. 

Delay  and  Disappointment  eiparienced  by  Columbus— Ilia  Final  Buccesa,  /ind  Treaty  with  the  Court 
of  Spain;  Obstacles  to  the  Pn)|eGt;  the  Piniona;  Balling  of  the  F.xpiHliiioa  ;  Piirticulars  of  tho 
Voyage;  Perseverance  of  Columbus ;  Discovery  of  Uuanahaiii ;  the  Natives;  Erroneous  Expecta- 
tions uf  Columbus, 34 

ORAPTRH   III 

Dlacdvery  of  other  Bkliama  Islands;  Continued  Expectations  of  flnding  Asia;  Discovery  of  Cuba ; 
Discovery  uf  llayti,  or  llia|>aiilola;  Character  of  the  Inhabitnnts ;  the  Cnclque  tiuacanagurl ;  the 
Baiita  Maria  wrecked ;  La  Navldad  furtllled ;  Columbus  sails  fur  Spain ;  further  Adventures  with 
the  Nativea, 40 

OBAPTan  !▼. 
The  Voyage  to  Spain;  Peril  Itrom  Tempeala;  Reflecllona  of  Culumbua;  Perfldloua  Conduct  of  a 
Portuguese ;  Columbus  arrives  at  Llstwn ;  MortiOcatlon  of  King  John ;  tho  Arrival  at  Paloa ; 
Death  of  Pinioii;  Splendid  Reception  of  the  Admiral  at  Court;  Honours  conferred  on  him;  Ills 
Second  Voysge;  UrMt  Excitement;  Discovery  of  Dominica,  Guaduloupe,  Porto  Rico,<cc. ;  Ad- 
vaDturva  with  the  Cannibala, 40 

ouAPraii  V. 
Arrival  of  the  Fleet  at  Hayti ;  the  Destruction  uf  I*  Navldad ;  City  of  Isabella  founded ;  Expeditions 
tu  the  Interior;  SuSeringa  and  DIacoiitent  of  the  ilolunlata;  Ex|iedition  of  Culumbua  to  the  Weat; 
Discovery  of  Jamaica ;  Intercourse  wllh  the  Natives ;  Tedious  Coasting  along  Cuba ;  Puppoeed  lu 
be  a  portion  uf  Asia;  Extraordinary  Process;  tho  Return  Voyage, Sii 

CRAPTIH    VI. 

MiseondiiGt  of  the  Bpanlarda  In  llayti;  ll'jatlUties  of  the  Indians;  their  Defeat  and  Eoalavemeitt; 
liijurlous  Treatment  of  Columbus;  Appulnlmeiil  of  Aguado;  their  Return  to  Spain, S8 


C0NTENT8. 


ORAPTSR  Til.  VAOS 

The  Declining  Forlunos  of  Columbus;  DIfflcultlea  in  FlUlng-out  an  Expedition;  Snila  on  bl>  Third 
Vcynge;  the  Discovery  of  South  America;  Extrsordioary  Theory ;  Columbus  arrives  st  Ha»U; 
Disorders  there ;  the  Rebellion  of  RoMan ;  llostilitiea  with  the  Indians— their  Defeat, S3 

CUAPTIB  Till. 

Triumph  of  the  Rebels;  Colnmbas  Ruined  at  Court;  Appointment  of  Bobcdilla— His  Insolence; 
Columbus  sent  to  flpsin  in  Chains;  SeiiMtion  of  the  Nation;  Verbal  Redress;  Ap|iointment  of 
Ovandu ;  Fourth  and  Last  Voyage  of  Columbus  to  the  New  World ;  Destruction  of  his  Enemies 
by  Tempest ;  Ills  Cruise  on  the  Coasts  of  Honduras,  Costs  Rica,  fcc,  fcc. ;  Search  for  a  Strait ;  His 
DisappolDtment, '• OB 

CBAPTBB    IX. 

Disastrous  Attempt  to  Found  a  Settlement ;  lloatllities  with  the  Indiana ;  the  Vessels  Anally  Stranded 
on  the  Island  of  Jamaica ;  Extraordinary  Device  of  Columbus ;  Mutiny  of  his  Followers ;  Treachery 
of  Ovandu;  Rescue  of  the  Crews ;  Atrocities  committed  on  the  Natives  of  Hayti;  Return  of  Colum- 
bus to  Spain— His  Treatment— His  Death;  Disposal  of  his  Remains, 77 

CBAPTBR    Z. 

Disco\ery  and  Survey  of  Cubs— Its  Conquest  by  Velasquez;  Memorable  Speech  of  an  Indian; 
Pnund-aion  of  Havana,  Ice. ;  Conquest  of  Porto  Rico  by  Ponce  de  Leon ;  Singular  Experiment  of 
a  Cacique ;  Final  Subjugation  of  the  Island ;  Discovery  of  Jamaica— it*  Humane  Conquest  by  Juan 
de  Esquivel ;  Subsequent  Cruelties  of  the  Spaniards ;  Aooount  of  Amerioua  Vespucius, 83 

'        THE   SETTLEMENT  OF   THE   ISTHMUS  AND  DISCOVERT  OF   THE   PACIFIC. 

CHAPTIR  I. 

Disastrous  Attempts  to  found  a  Settlement  on  the  Isthmus;  Vaseo  Nnnex  de  Balboa;  the  Settlement 
ofDarien;  Dealings  with  the  Indians;  Rumours  of  the  South  Sea;  Expedition  of  Balboa ;  Contests 
with  the  Indians ;  Discovery  of  the  PaciHo, 89 

CHAPTKR  II. 

The  Return  March ;  Appointment  of  Pedrarias  Davllla— His  Expedition— His  Jealousy  of  Balboa; 
Misfortunes  of  the  Colony;  Ex|M>ditlon  of  Morales  and  Pixarro;  Reconciliation  of  Pedrarias  and 
Baiboa ;  Veiisels  conveyed  Overland  to  the  Pacidc ;  Sudden  Arrest,  Trial,  and  Execution  of  Balboa,    93 

OBAPTXR  lit. 

Fernando  Magellan— His  Voyage  to  the  South-west ;  Winter*  at  Port  St.  Julian ;  the  Patogonians; 
Discovery  and  Passage  of  the  Straita  of  Magellan ;  Voyage  through  the  PaciHe  to  the  Philippine 
i^es;  Rashness  and  Death  of  Magellan ;  the  World  Circumnavigauid, 07 

,    ,,i      ,;  THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORT  OF  MEXICO.         ,,  y,       l 

OHAPTXR    I. 

Progress  of  Spanish  Conquest ;  Discovery  of  Yucatan— of  Mexico ;  Hernando  Cortes— His  Expedition ; 
Ascent  of  the  Rio  de  Tabasco ;  0>ntesls  with  the  Indiana ;  Arrival  at  San  Juan  de  Ulua, 101 

CHAPTKK    II. 

The  Mexican  Aborigine*— their  Origin  and  Appearance— their  Government,  Theology,  Manners  and 
Customs, ins 

OHAPTXR  III. 

The  Emperor  Montexuma;  landing  of  the  Spaniards— their  Negotiation  with  Montexuma- IHs 
Impolicy;  Splrndid  Presents;  Cortes  Revolts  against  Veiaaques— Forma  an  Alliance  with  the 
Totonaea— Destroys  their  Idols— Seta  forth  for  Mexioo, 110 

CHAPTXR    IT. 

The  March  toward  Mexico ;  Spirited  Resistance  of  the  TIascalans ;  Suceeaa  of  the  Spaniards— their 
Discouragements;  Firmnest  of  Cortes;  Submission  of  the  TIascalans;  Singular  Ctiange  of  Peeling; 
Duplicity  of  Cories ;  His  Zeal  lor  Conversion, IIS 

rMArrxR  v. 
Submission  of  Provinces ;  Cortes  marches  on  Cholula ;  Plot  Discovered  ;  Massacre  of  the  Cholulans, 
the  March  to  Mexico  Resumed  ;  Weak  Policy  of  Montexuma ;  the  Entrance  into  Mexico ;  Inter- 
views with  the  Em|H'ror—lliii  Generosity  and  AITublllty, 110 

CHAPTER    TI 

Drseription  of  the  Ancient  Capital  <;f  Tenochtitlsn  or  Mi-xico  :  the  Palaces  of  Monleiuma ;  HisColipc- 
tions  of  Nstural  History  ;  Superstition  of  the  Spaniards ;   Hideous  Sct-nes  of  t^acrillre ;  Relloclions,  134 


J. 


CONTENTS. 


OBAPTn  Tit.  PAoa 

Onprindpled  Bcb«me  of  CorlMi  His  Treaeberoui  Selxura  of  Monteiuma;  Burning  of  the  Atteo 
Obtelk;  Outrage  on  the  Emperor'i  Penon;  Frnatrated  OoiiBplracy  of  the  Princes;  the  Caciques 
swear  Allegiance  to  the  Bpanla*-  Urown ;  ASbetIng  Scene ;  Great  Tribute  of  Treasure ;  Rapacity  of 
Oortes 188 

OBAPTXB  Till. 

Religions  Zeal  of  Cortes;  Discontent  of  the  Mexicans;  Dangerous  Position  of  the  Spaniards;  Trans> 
actions  at  the  Court  of  Spain ;  Velasquez  dispatches  an  Expedition  against  Cortes ;  Cortes  marches 
against  Narvaex ;  Defeata  and  takea  him  Prisoner;  His  Politic  Conduct  after  Victory;  His  Forces 
greatly  augmented, 132 

OBAPTBR   IX. 

Massacre  of  the  Caciques  by  Alrarado ;  the  Garrison  Besieged ;  Oortes  returns  to  Mexico ;  His  Anger 
and  Insolence;  General  Attack  by  the  Aslecs;  Desperate  Conflict  for  many  days;  Montezuma  ad- 
dresses the  People ;  Disastrous  Result;  the  Great  TeoealU  taken  by  Storm, 137 

OBAFTIB   Z. 

Cortes  prepares  to  leave  the  City;  Death  of  Montezuma;  the  "  JVudts  TVtftc,"  or  Miserable  Night; 
Great  Slaughter  of  Spaniards  and  TIascalans  on  the  Causeway  of  Tacuba ;  the  Retreat  to  Tlaacala ; 
Battle  of  Otumba,  and  Extraordinary  Victory  of  the  Spaniards, 149 

OBAPTXB   ZI. 

Fidelity  of  the  TIascalan  Chleib;  Resolution  of  Cortes;  the  War  renewed;  Great  Successes  of  the 
Spaniards;  Sagacious  Policy  of  Cortes;  He  acquires  •  Great  Force  of  Native  Allies;  Death  of 
CuitUhua,  and  Accession  of  Guatemozin  to  the  ,'\iUio  Throne;  Cortes  marches  to  tbe  Valley  of 
Mexico— Takes  up  his  Quartert  at  Tezcuoo, 140 

OBAFTXR  ZII. 

The  Campaign  against  Mexico  renewed ;  Iztapalapan  and  other  Cities  taken  by  Storm ;  Great  Acces- 
sions to  tfie  Power  of  Cortes ;  Brigantines  transported  overland  ftt>m  Tiascsia ;  Many  Battles  with 
the  Aztecs— their  Resolution ;  Cortes  marches  around  the  Lakes,  and  storms  many  Cities— Arrives 
at  Tacuba;  Singular  Display  of  Emotion, ISO 

CBAPTIR  ZIII. 

Return  to  Tezcuco ;  Conspiracy  against  Cortes— His  Extraordinsry  Policy  and  Self-command ;  Launch- 
ing of  the  Fleet ;  Execution  of  Xlcotencatl ;  Defeatof  a  Great  Mexican  Flotilla  by  the  Fleet;  Mexico 
Blockaded ;  Continual  Assaults  un  the  City ;  Courage  and  Obstinacy  of  the  ComlnUants, 155 

OBAPTIB    ZIV.    ' 

General  Assault  on  the  City ;  Artful  Device  of  the  Besieged ;  Defeat  of  the  Spaniards— their  Losses ; 
Terrible  Particulars  of  the  Sacriflee  of  Prisoners ;  the  Great  Drum ;  Discouragement  snd  Defection 
of  the  Allies— their  Return ;  Gradual  Destruction  of  the  City, 1S9 

OHAPTXB   ZT. 

Terrible  Sufferings  and  Mortality  of  the  Besieged ;  Obstinate  Resistance  of  Guatemozin ;  Courage  and 
Fidelity  of  bis  People ;  Mexico  taken  by  Storm ;  Fearful  Massacre ;  Capture  of  Guatemozin ;  Re- 
flections on  tbe  Conquest, IM 

OBAFTBR  ZVI. 

The  Torture  of  Guatemozin ;  Settlement  of  the  Country ;  Fresh  Enterprises ;  Offlces  and  Titles  con- 
ferred on  Cortes— His  Ostentation— His  Segaclous  Policy ;  Great  Extension  of  the  Spanish  Territory ; 
tbe  Revolt  of  Olid ;  Terrible  March  to  Honduras ;  the  Murder  of  Guatemozin, 168 

OBAPTXR   ZVII. 

Arrival  at  Honduras;  Usurpstion  In  Meiico;  Obsequies  and  Masses  performed  for  Cortes— His 
Return ;  Suspicion  of  tbe  Court ;  Cortes  sails  to  Spain ;  lionoura  l>estuwed  on  bim ;  Returns  to 
Mexico ;  Expensive  Expeditions ;  Cortes  again  returns  to  Spain ;  Unsuccessful  at  Court ;  His 
Death ;  His  Character ;  Fate  of  the  Conquerors, 173 

CRAPTBR   ZVIII. 

Condition  ofthe  Indians  and  the  Spanish  Colonists;  National  Pride ;  System  of  Govemmeitt;  Depre- 
dations of  the  Bucanlers ;  Public  Works  fur  the  Pnitecllon  of  the  Capital ;  Indian  Revolta ;  Vera 
Crux  seized  by  Agramont;  Jesuiu  Expelled, ITt 

CHiPTKR    IIX 

Ck>mmencement  of  the  Ftrst  Revolution;  Iturrigaray;  Hidalgo;  First  Outbreak ;  Insurgents  delbated 
by  Oileja ;  Rayon  snd  Morelos ;  Congress  at  Chiipanzlngo ;  Declaration  of  Independence ;  Reverses 
of  tbe  Patriots ;  Iturbide, , 181 


8 


OONTKNTS. 


m 


OBAPTIR    ZZ.  PAOB 

bpoDMl  of  Um  Otiiiw  of  lodependraee  bjr  Iturblde ;  ProelMnatlon  at  Ignalm ;  Union  with  Ihe  Revo- 
laUoDvr  I'vt;;  Treaty  with  the  VIoerojr,  uid  Sarraoder  of  the  Opltal;  DiHeoilom;  Iturblde 
made  Snparor ;  HU  Overthrow  and  Death ;  Political  Faetloua ;  SpanUb  AtiampU  at  Rtoonquatt,  18S 

OBAPTBR   ZZI. 

OT«ribrow  of  Guerrero  by  Santa  Anna  and  Buatamenle ;  Tyrannical  Proceedlngt  during  the  Admin- 
iitratioD  of  Santa  Anna ;  Rnlitanoe  In  the  Provlnoea  of  Zacatecai  and  Texaa ;  tho  Texan  War  ; 
DeflMt  of  SanU  Anna ;  Dlfflenltlea  with  Pranoe ;  drU  War ;  Bant*  Anna  raitored  to  Power ;  Re- 
volt, headed  by  Paredea ;  Uerrera  Preiident, 190 

CHAPTaB  XZII. 

Annexation  of  T«XM  to  the  United  Statea;  Indignation  of  Mexico ;  Slldell'a  Oommlialon ;  Prepara- 
tion* agalnit  Texai ;  General  Taylor^  March  to  the  Rio  Grande ;  Commenoement  of  Hoetllltles ; 
War  Declared ;  Plan  of  the  Mexican  Campaign ;  Battle  of  Palo  Alto— of  Raaaea  de  la  Palma ;  Mal- 
amoraa  Occupied ;  Setom  of  Santa  Anna  to  Mexico ;  Reduction  of  Monterey, 103 

OBAPTXB   ZZIII. 

Santa  Anna's  Change  of  Policy ;  General  Scott**  Plan  of  Campaign4  Defeat  of  the  Mexican  Army  at 
Buena  Vltta ;  Mexican  PollUe* ;  Capture  of  Vera  Crut :  March  Into  the  Interior ;  Battle  of  Oerro 
Gonlo;  Occupation  of  Puubla ;  Guerilla  Warfare;  Fruitle**  Negotiation* ;  Advanoo  on  the  Capital,  198 

OHAPTSB    zziv. 
Movement*  of  Santa  Anna ;  HIa  Plan*  thwarted  by  Valencia ;  Battle  of  Oontrera* ;  Beixure  of  San 
Antonio ;  Battle  of  Cburubuwo ;  Negotiation* ;  Storming  of  the  Mollno  del  R«y  and  the  Ca*a 
Mata— of  Ihe  Fortrei*  of  Chapultepoc ;  Evacuation  of  the  City ;  it*  Occupation  by  the  American 
Force*;  Final  Military  Operation* ;  Treaty  at  Guadalupe  Uldalgo, SU3 

OBAPTBR    ZZT. 

Summary  of  Naval  Operation* ;  Colonel  Kearney's  Proceeding*  in  New  Mexico ;  Event*  In  Califoi^ 
Bla;  Union  of  Colonel  Fremont  with  Commodore  Stockton;  Kearney^  Arrival  at  San  Diego; 
Campaign  of  tho  Cumbined  Force* ;  Dispute*  between  the  American  Commander* ;  Colonel  Doni- 
phan'* Service* ;  Mexico,  *inoe  the  Conclusion  of  Peace  with  the  United  State* ;  Return  of  Santa 
Anna;  DUBcultie*  relating  to  the  Meeilia  Valley, 909 

THE   COIiqUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF   PERU. 
OHAPTXB    I. 

The  Capital  uf  the  Isthmii*  transferred  to  Panama ;  Account  of  Francisco  PIsarro— Ills  OonfMerate* 
—Hi*  First  Voyage  in  Quc*t  of  Peni ;  Grievou*  Los*  and  Suffering ;  Hi*  Return ;  the  Voyage  of 
Almagro;  Kxtraordlnary  Contract  uf  Pixarro,  Almagro,  and  Luque, 813 

OHAPTXR  II. 

Second  Voyage  of  Pixarro  and  Almagro — their  Suffurlng* ;  Fre*h  Dlacoverie* ;  Return  of  Almagro ; 
the  Island  uf  Gallu ;  Reeolutiun  uf  Pixarro  and  Twelve  Others— their  Discovery  of  Peru— Its  Trea- 
sures ;  Pixarru  repairs  to  8paiu ;  Grant  uf  the  Crown ;  Rulum  uf  Pixsrru  with  his  Brothers ;  Ihe 
Third  Expediliuu  to  Peru ;  Battle  at  Puna, 818 

CHAPTBR    III. 

The  Aborigine*  of  Peru;  the  Rule  of  the  Incas;  Reflections;  Agricultural  I.«bours;  Llamas;  Im- 
meme  Public  Work* ;  Wwlike Operation* ;  Public  Reeord* ;  Religion;  TradltloDs;  Early  Hist«iry ; 
Condiliun  of  the  Race  in  Modern  Times, 881 

CHAPTIR  IV. 

Pixarro  lands  at  Tumbex— Marches  Snulhward,  and  fuunds  San  Miguel;  Proceeds  In  Quest  of  the 
Inca;  Ouase*  the  Andes;  Friendly  Messages;  Arrival  atCsxamalca;  Interview  with  Aubuallpa; 
Uia  Reserve;  Strength  of  lb*  Per     tans, 337 

OUAPTKR   V 

Cruel  and  Andacion*  Scheme  of  Pliarro;  the  Visit  of  Ihe  Inca;  Scene  wilh  Ihe  Friar  Vhlverrie; 
Terrible  Ma**aore  of  the  Peruvian* ;  Seixure  of  lli«  Inca ;  His  Furlitude ;  Pluixler  of  the  Cily  and 
Camp ;  Extraorilinsry  Ulfer  of  Ransom  ;  the  Munler  of  Huascur, 830 

CHAPTXR  VI 

The  Expedition  to  Paehaeamae ;  the  f*polls  uf  Omen ;  Division  iif  Immenw  Treasure  ;  the  Atmelnus 
Trial,  Sentence,  and  Murder  of  Alahuallpa ;  lly|Hicrlsy  of  Pixarro ;  Reflet  lions ;  Eventual  Fate  of 
Um  Murderers, 834 


CONTENTS. 


OBA.PTaB  711.  PASB 

BxeenUon  of  Challoaohirat ;  ludUa  HmUUUw  ;  Eotnaoe  of  the  Bpuilardi  into  Giuoo ;  Mure  Traa- 
•on ;  iDAUguration  of  the  Inoa  Manoo  Cepao ;  Lima  Founded ;  Dispute*  between  Almagro  and  the 
Plianoa ;  Riilng  of  the  Indiana ;  Siege  of  Cuseo ;  Manacre  uf  the  Bpoulardt ;  Civil  War  Iwtween 
the  Bpaniah  Oenerab ;  Defisataiid  Execution  of  Almigro 338 

OBAPTBR  Tin,  , 

lllMion  of  Hernando ;  HI*  Fata ;  Expaditiim  of  Gonialo  Pliarro;  Diaeovery  of  and  Voyage  down 
the  Amaion;  Terrible  Solfcrlngt;  Conaplraojr  agalntt  Pliarro  by  the  Partiianaof  Almagro;  His 
Aiaaaalnatlons  HU  Character,  fco S43 

OHAPTBB   IX. 

Vaca  de  Caatro ;  Defeat  of  Young  Almagro  at  Chupai ;  DIaico  Nnnei  de  Vela ;  Unpopular  Decrees , 
Rebellion,  headed  by  Gonialo  PUarro ;  OTerthiow  of  the  Viceroy, 347 

OBi-PTSB   X. 

Forcea  raised  by  Nunes ;  His  Flight  Northward ;  Deeisive  Battle  near  Quito ;  Death  of  the  Viceroy ; 
Supremacy  of  Pixarro ;  Hisslon  of  Pedro  de  la  Galea ;  His  Politic  Proceedings ;  Battle  of  Huarina ; 
Pizarro  at  Cuxoo, '. S53 

OBAPTSB   XI. 

Cautions  MoTements  of  Gasca;  Hia  March  to  Cuxoo;  Bloodleaa  Victory  at  Xaqnixaguana ;  Execution 
of  Carbi^Jal  and  Pixarro ;  Wise  Administration  of  Gasca ;  Subsequent  Disorders ;  the  Colonial  Sys- 
tem; the  Mita  and  Repartimiento ;  luaurreoUoo  of  1780, S57 

OHAPTBB  XII. 

Commencement  of  the  ReTolution ;  InTasion  by  San  Martin ;  Oeenpatlon  of  Lima ;  Independence 
Proclaimed;  Rereraes  of  the  Patriots ;  ArIybi  of  Bolivar  in  Peru, 301 

OBAPTBB  XIII. 

Suceessea  of  the  Royalists ;  Hovementa  of  the  Patriot  Army ;  Decisive  Victory  of  Ayaoneho ;  Siege  of 
Callao;  Bglivar's  Administration ;  Subsequent  Condition  of  the  Republic, 365 

t 

CHIU. 


OBAPTBR    t. 

Expedition  of  Almagro ;  Commission  of  Pedro  de  Valdlvia ;  St.  Jsgo  Founded ;  Battle  with  the 
Mapochinians ;  Embassy  of  Miranda  and  Mouroy;  Destruction  of  the  Quillotan  Miners;  Valdivia's 
March  Southward;  the  Araucanlana, ', 369 

OBAPTBR  II. 

Battle  at  the  Andalien ;  Invasion  of  Arauoania ;  Foundation  of  the  City  of  Valdlvia ;  Election  of 
Caupolican  to  the  Office  of  ToquI ;  Indian  Successes;  Defeat  and  Death  of  Valdlvia;  Defeat  of 
VUlagranby  Lautaro;  Destruction  of  the  City  of  Conception, 373 

OBAPTBR    III. 

Mortality  among  the  Indians ;  Disputes  respecting  the  Viceroyalty ;  Second  Deatniction  of  Concep- 
tion; I^utaru's  Ex|)edltiun  against  Santiago;  Dun  Garcia  de  Heoduza;  Invasion  of  Araucouiu; 
Caupolican's  Discomfllure ;  Expedition  to  Chiloe, 3i<0 

OBAPTBR  17. 

Caupolican  the  Younger ;  Signal  Successes  of  the  Spanlnrds ;  Warlike  Operations  of  Antlguenu — of 
Paillamocbu;  Recovery  of  Araucauia  by  the  Native* ;  Peace  Concluded  in  1041, SiS 

ctlAPTRH  7. 

Renewal  of  War;  Peace  of  1773;  Present  Condition  of  the  Araucnnlans;  the  Revolution  in  Clilll; 
theCarreras;  Riiustabiisliment  of  8|mnlsh  Power;  Intervention  of  San  Martin;  Civil  Wars;  At- 
tempt of  Ramon  Freyre ;  Rebellion  under  Vidaurre ;  Eslabiisbment  of  the  Republic, 'iS9 

FLORIDA. 

CIlAriKH     I. 

Juan  Ponce  de  Leon— His  Vuysge  In  Srarch  of  the  Fountain  of  Youth  ;  Discovery  of  Florida ;  Ills 
Second  Expnlilion;  His  Death;  Dmuatrous  Attempts  uf  Ayllon  and  Nurvaei;  lli'rnuMit'j  <U>  Soto 
—Appointed  Governor  of  Cuba ;  His  I  x|Kxlitlon  tu  Florida ;  March  to  the  liilurior ;  Contusls  with 
the  Indiana, SM 


'3^^ 


10 


CONTENTS. 


OHAPTBR    II.  PkOm 

DeliiRlTe  Report  of  an  Indian ;  DlMstrout  March  through  the  Interior ;  King  Tuacaloosa— Hl8  Stato 
and  IlauKhlinom ;  liii  Secret  Treachery ;  Great  Battle  at  Mauvlla ;  Conflagration  of  the  Town,  and 
Viclorjr  of  the  Spaniards ;  Mutinous  Spirit  of  the  Cavalien ;  Despondency  of  De  Soto ;  He  resumes 
the  March, 9N 

OHAPTXII  III. 

De  Solo  marches  Westward ;  La«ses'fW>m  Indian  Hostility;  Reaches  and  Crosses  the  Mississippi ; 
Marches  to  Arkansas ;  Returns  to  the  Misalselppi ;  His  Death  and  Burial ;  Fate  of  the  Survivors ; 
their  Voyage  to  Mexico,...., • 303 

CHAFTaa  17. 

Early  French  Settlements;  Bloody  Contests  between  the  Spanish  and  Proneh  Colonists;  Spanish 
Miraluns ;  English  Depredations  and  Oolonliation  on  the  Coast ;  Invasions  of  Florida  by  Gov- 
ernor Moore, ....• 306 

OHAPTBR  ▼.  ' 

The  Temaaees ;  Invasion  of  Florida  by  Oglethorpe ;  Cession  to  Great  BritalD ;  Dr.  Tumbull's  Colony ; 
Recession  to  Spain ;  Invasion  of  East  Florida  from  the  United  States ;  Acquisition  of  Florida  by 
the  United  States, 311 

SODTH-AIHERICAN  REVOLUTIONS. 

COLOMBIA. 

OBAPTSa  I. 

Loyalty  of  the  bpanlsh  Colonisia;  Arrogance  and  Tyranny  of  their  Rulers;  Causes  of  the  ReToIadon; 
the  Establishment  of  Juntas ;  Massacre  at  Quito ;  the  Junta  of  Caraocas  In  Veneiaela ;  Cemmenofr- 
mentof  Hostilities;  Declaratlou  of  Independence, 310 

CBAPTSR   II. 

The  Athirs  of  New  Grenada;  Expulsion  of  the  Spaniards  Itnm  Santa  Fe  and  Quito;  Dlasenslont 
of  the  Kepublicans;  Advantages  of  the  Royalists— their  Cruelty;  the  '*Army  of  Death;"  Fresh 
Massacre  at  Quito ;  Alternate  Successes  of  the  Patriots  and  Royalists ;  the  Earthquake  at  Caraecas ; 
lU  Effect;  Overthrow  of  the  Liberals, 319 

OHAPTSR   III. 

Simon  Boll var— His  Generous  and  Patriotic  Spirit ;  His  Successes  against  the  Royalists ;  Asslsteil  by 
New  Granada ;  He  Reenters  Caraecas ;  "  War  to  the  Death  ;*  the  Servile  Insurrection  and  War ; 
Cruel  Deed  of  Bolivar;  Battle*  with  the  Royalists ;  Renewed  ProstraUon  of  the  Republican  Cause,  3S9 

OBAPTKR  IV. 

Rasloratloil  of  Ferdinand ;  Extinetinn  of  Ix>yalty  in  the  Colonies;  Tyrannical  Poliey  of  the  King; 
Spirited  Conduct  of  the  Congress  of  New  Granada ;  Dissensions  of  the  Republicans ;  Ii\)udlclous 
Conduct  of  bolivar, , 33S 

OBAPTXR  ▼. 

Arrival  of  the  Spanish  Army,  under  Morlllo;  Terrible  Blockade  of  Carthagena;  Renewed  Exertion* 
of  the  Patriots ;  Altemate  Successes ;  Morlllo  Conquers  New  Granada ;  Severities  exercised  on  the 
Vanquished ;  Marches  into  Venezuela ;  Successful  Defence  of  Margarita  by  the  Patriots, 3S8  ' 

CHAPTCR   TI. 

Attitude  of  Foreign  Nations ;  British  Volunteers ;  Campaign  of  Bolivar  In  New  Granada ;  Brilliant 
Successes ;  rK-r<«t  and  Pllitht  of  the  Royalists ;  Gratltmle  of  the  People ;  Union  of  the  Slates  of  New 
Granada  and  Venezuela  under  the  title  of  Colombia ;  Reverses  and  Successes  uf  the  Patriots, 133 

OHAPTXR  vii. 
Revolution  In  Spam ;  Overtures  of  the  Spanish  I.«ader* ;  Resolution  of  the  Patriots ;  the  Armistice; 
the  War  renewed ;  Humane  Pulley  of  Bolivar;  Signal  Victories  of  the  Republicans;  the  Spaniard* 
Completely  Expelled  from  Columbia ;  Independence  of  that  Slate  acknowledged, 33j 

BOLIVIA. 

The  Revolution  in  I Ji  Pst ;  a  Junta  established ;  the  City  taken  by  the  Royallats— their  Cruelties ;  the 
Patriot  Army  marches  IV<im  Buenos  Ayres— its  Success  and  Hubsi'quenI  Defeal ;  Second  AllempI 
at  Reviilutlon  ;  Massacres  in  Cochabamba  and  Pulosl :  Secoml  Kxpedlllon  from  Buenos  Ayrea — Its 
Discomflture ;  Guerilla  Warfare;  Bolivia  Einiincipaletl  by  the  Victory  of  Ayacucho, 331 


CONTENTS.  11 


UNITED  PROVINCES  OF  LA  PLATA. 

OHAPTIR   I.  FAoa 

CauMaof  the  R«Tolulion  In  Duenoa  Ajrret;  the  Viceroys  Llnlera  and  dmerot;  their  Fate;  Wart 
with  the  Ruyalitts  in  Upper  Peru— iu  Montevideo ;  Diaaeniiona  among  the  Patriota ;  Rapid  Changes 
or  Government ;  Alternate  Successes  of  the  Patriots  and  Royalisla ;  Ban  Martin ;  Fall  of  Monte 
Video;  Election  or  Pueyredon  as  Supreme  Director, 343 

CnAPTBR  II. 

Feuds  or  the  Patriota ;  Obstinacy  or  Artlgas ;  the  Portuguese  take  Monio  Video,  and  Dereat  the  Repub- 
lican Army ;  San  Martin ;  his  Passage  or  the  Andes  and  Victorious  Campaign  In  Chill ;  Upper  Peru ; 
Continued  Resistance  or  the  Banda  Oriental, 347 

OBAPTIR    III, 

ABhirs  In  Chill ;  Disuten  or  the  Patriota ;  Victory  or  San  Martin  at  the  Plains  or  Haypu ;  Independ- 
ence orChili  secured ;  Constitution  orihe  United  Provinces;  Resignation  or  Pueyredon;  Continued 
Civil  Dissensions;  Final  Restoration  or  Harmony ;  the  Republic  Acknowledged  by  the  United  States,  350 


PART  III. 
THE    PORTUGUESE    IN  AMERICA. 

BRAZIL. 

OHAPTXR    t. 

Discovery  or  Brv.il  by  Cabral— or  Rio  de  Janeiro  by  Sousa ;  French  Colony ;  Aggressions  or  the 
Dutch;  their  Conquests;  Count  Maurice  or  Nassau;  his  Successes;  his  Recall;  Impolicy  or  the 
Dutch;  their  Eipulslon  flrom  Brazil, 353 

OBAPTIR    11.  • 

Ilrazil  a  Penal  Colony;  the  Result;  Oppression  or  the  Natives;  the  Feudal  System;  Govemorgen- 
eral  Appointed;  Story  or  Caramuru ;  Bahia;  the  Jesuits;  War  with  theCahctes;  MemdeSa;  hia 
Crusade  against  Cannibalism ;  War  with  the  Aymores;  their  Characteristics, 356 

CBAPTER   III. 

Brazil  under  Spanish  Influence ;  English  Piratical  Expeditions ;  Odium  Incurred  by  the  Jesuits  in 
Protecting  the  Indians;  Revolts;  War  with  the  Negro  Nntion,  the  Palmarese— their  Subdual ;  Gold 
and  Diamonds;  French  Hostilities;  Dereat  or  Dn  Clerc;  Rio  Janeiro  taken  by  Duguay  de  Trouln; 
the  Cruel  and  Impolitic  Expulsion  or  the  Jesuits  rrom  Brazil, 359 

CHAPTia    17. 

Flight  or  the  Rnyal  Family  fWim  Portugal  to  Brazil;  the  "Casta  Regia;"  Brazil  opened  to  Foreign 
Trade  and  Civilization  ;  Brazil  erected  into  a  Kingdom ;  Dom  John  VI. ;  Corruption  and  Discontent ; 
Inauirections;  Return  or  the  King  to  Portugal ;  Tyranny  or  the  Portuguese  Cortes;  Irritation  or  (he 
Brazilians;  Resistance  or  Dom  Pettro  and  his  Capital, 393 

OBAPTIR   V. 

Impotent  Demonstration  or  the  Portuguese  Government;  Dom  Pedro  proclaimed  Protector;  Inde- 
pendenoo  or  Brazil  declared;  Pe<lro  prucluimod  Emperor;  Rrtreat  or  the  Portuguese  Troops; 
Difllcullie!!  with  the  Democracy ;  Insurrection  under  Carvaiho  suppressed ;  Popular  Revolution  at 
Rio  ;  Abdication  ol  Duni  Pedro,  and  his  Retreat  to  Portugal, 360 

CBAPTIR   VI. 

The  Child  Dom  Pedro  II. ;  the  Triple  Regency ;  the  Regency  or  Foijo— or  Lima ;  Fresh  Revolution ; 
the  Miijiirily  or  the  Emperor  procleimod ;  Popular  Troubles  renewed— Disastrous  Result;  tho 
Royal  Marriages;  Capabilities  and  Necessities  or  Brazil, 370 


12 


CONTENTS. 


PART  IV. 
'  THE  DUTCH   IN  AMERICA.  « 

THE   NEW  METHERLAIfDS. 

OHAPTIR   t.  PAQJt 

Ciptain  Henry  Hudson;  hli  Vujragm  In  Search  of  a  Nurthei!^  Panage  to  China;  Employed  by  thu 
OuUih  East  India  Company ;  Balli  In  the  Hair-Moon ;  Crulaet  along  the  American  Coail  in  Search 
of  a  Nurth<we<t  Passage;  Discovers  and  Ascends  the  Hudson  River;  Dealings  with  the  Indians,.. .  373 

CBAFTSR   II. 

Hudson  turns  Homeward;  Murderous  Hostilities  with  the  Indians;  his  Return  to  England;  his  I<aat 
Voyage  and  Discovery ;  HuBbrings  during  the  Winter;  Henry  Green;  Mutiny  of  Ihn  Crew ;  Hudson 
udOlheraset  Adrift  to  Perish, 378 

OHAPTBR    III. 

Voytgps  of  the  Dutch  to  Miinnahota;  Ex|iedllion  of  Blok  and  Chrlatloanse ;  New  Amsterdam  (New 
York)  foundetl ;  Colony  Planted  on  the  Delaware— Singularly  Destroyed ;  Governors  Minuit  and 
VanTwiller;  Settlement  of  the  Swedes  on  the  Delaware, 370 

CBAPTBR  IV. 

Governor  Keift ;  Governor  Stuy  vcsant— his  Character— hu  Subdues  the  Swedes ;  Untenable  Claims  of 
the  Eiiglinh;  Grant  by  Charles  II.  to  the  Duke  of  York;  New  Amsterdam  taken  by  Colonel  Nic- 
oUa—Rillaken  by  the  Dutch ;  Final  Cession  to  England, 383 


PAR*  V. 


THE   FRENCH   IN   AMERICA. 

CANADA. 
OBAPTSR   t. 

Early  Fishing  Voyage* ;  Giovanni  Verraiono ;  hi*  Voyage  In  the  Dauphin ;  Arrive*  at  North  America ; 
.)«*criplion  of  the  Country ;  its  Inhabitants;  Verrasano  coasts  Northerly;  Kidnapping;  the  Great 
Harbour;  Friendliness  oftlio  Indians;  Verraianu  sail*  to  Labrador;  Returns  to  Franca;  his  Sub- 
sequent Fate, SM 

CHAPTER   ti 
Jacques  Cartier  Discovers  the  9L  Lawrence;  his  Second  Voyage;  Quebec;  Hochelsga,  or  Montreal; 
Friendly  Indians;  Treacherous  Kidnapping  by  Cariier;  Rxiiedllion  of  Roberval  and  Cartier;  Ml»' 
fortunes  and  Failure ;  Attempts  under  Henry  IV. ;  Ponigrttv6,  Champlain,  and  De  Monia ;  their 
Expedition, 3S0 

OnAPTKR   III 

Champlain  Founds-Quebec— make*  War  on  the  Iroquois— Founds  Montreal;  Expeditions  with  the 
Hurons ;  his  Discouragements ;  Inconsiderable  Settlements :  Canada  token  by  the  English ;  Restored  ; 
the  Company  of  New  France;  Death  of  Champlain— his  Character, 303 

CHAPTKK  17. 

Administration  of  Monlmairny;  Unprosporous  Oindition  of  the  Province;  D'Arsenson ;  D'Avan- 
gour;  Triumphs  of  the  Iroquois;  Earihquake;  Rtinforceinents  from  France;  Mesey;  Tracy;  de 
Uourcelles;  the  Comte  de  Fnmlensc— his  Character;  Turbulent  Administralion ;  de  la  Barre— his 
Et|>ediiiiin  auaiiist  thu  Iroquois— Us  Failure;  Celebrated  Speech  of  Garangula;  Magnanimous 
Conduct  of  the  l.'o<|uois, 307 

CnAPTXH   V 

DeNonviUetloviriior;  hinTroactmry  to  ihe  Iroquois;  Renewed  HiMtilitie*;  Treaty  of  Peace  ;  Rmken 
by  Triiacliery  :  Kxtrsiinliiiiiry  Mirnlnirem  of  I.e  lint,  n  Huron  Cliief ;  Terrible  Invasion  by  the  Iro- 
quola,  and  Massacre  of  the  French  ;  Desperate  Condition  of  the  Colony, m 


CONTENTS. 


18 


ORAPTaR  TI.                                                                         PAoa 
Mappolnlmeiit  of  M.  de  FrontanM  ;  Nagotlatlont  with  the  Iroquoli;  Deitraotion  of  Schenectady, 
be. ;  Unauecenhil  Expedition  of  Plilppa  agalnit  Quebec ;  Benewed  Wan  with  the  Iroquoli ;  Ex- 
pedlUon  of  Frontenao, 40S 

OHAPTBR  VII. 

De  Callleret ;  Peace  with  the  Iroqnolt ;  Bingular  neiolution  of  the  French  Priioneri ;  De  Vandranit ; 
Expedition  against  Canada— Dlioonoerted  bjr  the  Iroquois ;  UnaucocMful  Expedition  of  Niehotaon ; 
Treaty  of  Utrecht;  Extension  and  Improrement  of  the  Province;  De  Beaubarnols;  Peace  and 
Prosperity  of  Canada, MB 

oHAPTan  ▼III. 
Encroachments  of  the  French ;  Fort  Du  Quesno ;  the  French  War ;  Expedition  of  Dradduck— his 
Defeat  and  Death;  Colonel  Washington;  Expedition  against  Crown  Point;  Defeat  of  Dieskau; 
the  Marqais  de  Montcalm— his  Successes ;  Great  Exertions  of  the  English— their  Superior  Force; 
Defeat  of  Aberorombie  at  Tloonderoga, 411 

OBAPTBR   IZ. 

Preparations  for  the  Conqnest  of  Canada;  Armament  under  Wolfe  dispatched  to  Quebec;  Defeat  of 
the  French  on  the  Helghta  of  Abraham ;  Death  of  Wolfe  and  Montcalm ;  Surrender  of  Quebec- 
Besieged  by  De  LctI  ;  Concentration  of  the  English  Forces ;  Fall  of  Montreal  and  of  Canada— Oea- 
aion  to  England, 414 


ACADIA,  ETC. 
OBAPTBR   I. 

Expedition  of  De  Honts  and  Champlain ;  First  Settlement  of  Acadia ;  Port  Roynl ;  Mortality  among 
the  Colonists ;  Leicarbot;  the  Jesuits;  Settlement  at  Mount  Desert— Broken  up  by  the  English; 
Destruction  of  Port  Royal;  Alexander;  La  Tour;  Cessions  and  lUceasiona  »(  Acadia;  ilogtiilties 
of  the  English  Colonies ;  PIraUeal  ExpediUona ;  Final  Subjection  of  Acadia  to  the  English, 417 

OBAPTBR  It. 

Aeooont  of  the  Acadlans ;  their  Innocence,  Simplicity,  and  Happineta ;  Description  by  Raynal ;  En- 
mity of  the  English ;  Massacre  at  Kennebec— Revenged  by  the  Indians ;  Further  Hostilities;  Cruel 
Expulsion  of  the  Acadlana ;  their  Transportation  and  Sullbrings;  Affecting  Memorial ;  their  Fatc^  490 


CAFE   BRETON,  ETC. 
OHAFTBR    I. 

Cession  of  the  French  Provinces  to  England ;  Louisburg  founded  on  Cape  Breton- lis  Importances 
Expedition  of  Pepperall ;  Louisburg  taken  by  the  English— Receded  to  Franco ;  Expedition  of 
Amherst ;  Brave  Defence  of  Louisburg— its  Surrender  and  Destruction ;  Bt  John's — Captured  by 
the  English;  Indian  Trophies  discovered  there, 49li 


LOmstANA. 

OHAPTXR   I. 

The  Rio  Grande ;  the  Canadian  French ;  Reports  of  the  Indians ;  Father  Marquette  and  M.  Joliet — 
their  Expedition  in  Hearch  of  the  Mississippi- Voyage  down  its  Stream;  Painted  Monetere;  the 
Missouri;  Ohio;  Arkansas;  Return  Voyage;  Death  of  Father  Marquette;  Enthuaiaam  of  the 
French  st  his  Discovery, 439 

CHAPTBR    H. 

La  Salle— his  Attempts  to  reach  China;  Grant  of  the  King;  Tonti— their  Expedition  to  the  West- 
Disconcerted  by  Treachery ;  Actual  and  Pretended  Diacovories  of  Father  Hennepin  ;  Voyage  of  La 
Salle  to  the  Outlet  of  the  Mississippi— he  takes  Possession  of  the  Valley ;  the  Return ;  Imitation  of 
Indian  Ferocity, 43S 

CHAPTBR   III, 

Expedition  of  Iji  Hallo  by  Sea  in  Qiioat  of  Iho  Misalssippi ;  he  Misses  the  Entrance;  Lands  at  the 
Ilsy  of  St.  Bornaril ;  Founds  a  Colony ;  Misfortunes  and  Disoourngemenis ;  he  sets  forth  Overland 
for  Canada ;  his  Death ;  Fate  of  the  Survivors  of  the  Expedition— of  the  Colonv  of  St.  Louis, 43S 


14 


CONTENTS. 


rBAPTCR    17.  PAOI 

NotlMl  of  Ik*  MiMiMlppI  Vallqr ;  Bsp«dlllcfl  of  LemulM  D'Ibervllle— ba  Found*  8«tU«menU  M 
BUoal,  Mobll«,  sod  Ilia  Dauphlne ;  Tuutl;  l/npniapafoua  Condition  of  Loulilaoa;  Death  of  D'Iber- 
villa;  bU  Brother  Bienville;  Croiat;  the  Mlialialppi  Company;  Great  ImmlgraUon, Buflbrlnf, aiid 
Mortality;  New  Orleans  Founded;  Continued  Immigration;  Vaat  Eiiant  of  Loulalanai 438 

oBAPTaa  T. 
IJoetlllly  ot  the  Natehti ;  IMr  Iq|urlea ;  Vain  Ramonslranea ;  Plan  for  the  Deetruetlon  of  tha  FNneh ; 
Maiaaer*  at  Fort  Rotalla ;  Cam  palpi  afalnat  the  Natobei ;  FllchI  and  Final  Destruction  of  lb*  Tribe ; 
War  with  the  Cbieaaawi;  Ditaitroua  Campaign  of  DMrtefnM*  and  Bienville ;  Groat  Lots  of  the 
Fraoeb  and  their  Allies;  UosalisAolory  RasultofaSeeondOHipalgn, 449 

ORAPTIR  VI. 

Prosperity  ot  Louisiana ;  Undisturbed  by  War ;  Bugarswi*  Introduced ;  Commencement  of  Trou- 
bles with  the  English ;  the  Ohio  Company  *,  Resisted  by  Du  Quesno ;  the  Virginia  Expedition  under 
Washington ;  War  wllh  the  French  of  Canada,  he. ;  Taking  of  Fort  Du  Quesne ;  Overthrow  of  the 
Freoeh  In  Canada;  Public  Relinquishment  of  a  Part  of  Louisiana  to  England,  and  Secret  Cession 
of  the  Bemslnder  to  Spain ;  Vain  Remonstrance, 443 

CBAPTBR  Til. 

Arrival  of  Ulloa  as  Spanish  Governor— his  Obstinacy— his  Espnision  fh>m  the  Country;  Arrival  of 
O'Reilly— bis  Perfidy  and  Cruelty ;  Five  Citiien*  Executed;  Tyranny  of  O'Reilly;  Gresl  Emigralton 
lh>m  Loulilanft-Uiat  Province  Rtoeded  to  Fnutoe— Sold  by  Napoleon  to  tha  United  States, «48 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


VOLUME  I. 

VAai 

VioMiTTi  Trru— FronlUpl«M 1 

EqUMtriuPortndtorVVMhingtoD 4 

Columbas  beibn  the  CoanoU  of  Balunuoa 3.1 

PDrtnllorChrlitopherOoIambiu 40 

BoeMlDlhe  WmI  ludiw 8S 

Portrait  of  Hemudo  OortM 113 

Portrait  of  HoDtMuma,  In  hit  Royal  Coitame 199 

BaoriflooorSpanUhPrlaonenontliaareatTeocalll 161 

Equeatrlan  Portrait  of  General  Santa  Anna 199 

Bquettrian  Portrait  of  General  Zaebary  Taylor 1S3 

The  Paaa  of  Angoetura 199 

The  Bombardment  of  Vera  Orus SOI 

Portrait  of  General  WlnOaldSoott,  In  Military  Full-Drew au5 

The  American  Army,  under  General  Scott,  entering  the  City  of  Mexico 3UH 

Portrait  of  Frandioo  Piiarro Si7 

The  IncB  Atahuallpa  pleading  before  Pixarro 333 

The  Delbnoe— a  Scene  In  Early  American  HIatory ^*3 

South  American  Indiana S73 

Wreck  of  Narraeiand  hia  Companlont 897 

OelebrBtion  of  the  MaM,in  preeenceof  the  Indiana .* 3S3 

Interview  between  Gorernor  Haynee,  of  Connecticut,  and  the  Dutch  Navigator  De  Vrlee 38 1 

Wadilngton  at  Brwidock'i  OeflMt 413 


PART  I. 


^^»*iM»'MM»^^MMMWMWM^^^V»A^^O^^^^A^^A^A» 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA, 


CXI    A   D  T  P  15      T 

AHOIBNT  ABORIGINAL  BAOBS. — THB  SOANDIlf  ATIAN  TOTAOBBB 

— DISCOVERT  OP  ICBLAND. — BIRBK  THB  RBD. — DI8C0TBRT  AND 

BBTTLEMENT  OF  OREBNLAND. — NORTH  AMERICA  ACCIDBNT- 

ALLT  DISCOVERED  BT  BIARNI  HERIULFSON.  —  VOTAOB 

OF  LBIF   BIRBKSON.  —  AMERICA   NAMED  VINLAND. — 

THB  VOTAOB  AND   DISC0VERIB8  OF  THORVALD. — 

HIS  DEATH. — ATTEMPT  OF  THORSTBIN. 

The  history  of  those  ancient  races,  which,  before  the  coming  of 
Europeans,  for  immemorial  ages,  inhabited  our  continent,  is,  for  the 
most  part,  at  this  day  dissolved  in  vague  tradition,  or  locked  up  in 
inscrutable  hieroglyphic.  Excepting  the  two  great  semi-civilized 
empires  of  ^fexico  and  Peru,  (to  be  noticed  in  their  appropriate 
place,)  scarcely  a  record  has  survived  of  the  nations,  once  so  numer- 
ous and  powerful,  which,  from  limited  but  certain  evidence,  ard  known 
to  have  existc('  in  the  Western  World.  They  "died  and  made  no 
sign,"  beyond  rude  and  massive  erections,  the  character  of  which 
might  assign  them  to  almost  any  race,  that,  after  partially  climbing 
the  steep  of  civilization,  has,  from  gradual  decay  or  sudden  destruc- 
tion, lapsed  into  barbarism  or  vanished  altogether.  Occasional 
glimpses,  as  we  proceed,  will  be  caught  of  the  monuments  and  tra- 
ditions of  these  long-vanished  communities;  but  the  true  history  of 
the  American  continent  may  be  said  to  date  from  the  first  arrival  on 
its  shores  of  European  discoverers. 

That  arrival,  for  several  centuries  strangely  ignored  by  the  histor- 
ical world,  was  much  earlier  than  has  been  commonly  supposed.    Bv 
Vol.  III.— 2 


■  -■*» 


IS 


TH '■  rd«f  I.K'8   BOOK   OF   IIISyORY. 


jj.^irt'***''^^  lUMtioncd  atiflt     Mfify,  by  the  most  perfect  con- 

sisu  I.  i  »n(l  cdint  ,(."nw  nf  ilctails,  amJ  \>y  ft  liost  of  corrohorativo 
fart"^  \t  has  been  nuulv  evidenf  that  the  An"'!'  n  continent,  five  con- 
(arie-n  l)ofore  tlie  mctnornblc  voyage  of  ColunibuH,  was  discovered 
Unf?  frvjuci  ♦ly  visited  by  iiu  "f  European  race.  Without  delaying 
ti>  nif>*-  onthoritK  s  or  adduce  evidence  on  ^  matter  so  fully  elucidated 
by  otb'.'/P,  yff'  ^hall  ^ipocced  briefly  to  prwx  '  ^  the  facts  as  accepted  by 
the  moat  exact  ^nA  scrupulous  antiquarians  of  our  day. 

Nine  hundred  years  ago,  the  mariners  of  the  Scandinavian  penin- 
sula were  the  most  daring,  skilful,  and  successful  of  their  age.  Their 
voyages,  distingtiishcd  by  a  strange  mixture  of  commerce,  piracy, 
nnd  discovery,  added  no  little  to  the  geographical  knowled;,'o  of  their 
day.  In  the  year  8fll,  they  discovered  Iceland,  and,  fourteen  years 
afterwards,  planted  a  colony  there.  The  main  stepping-stone  to 
America  thus  gained,  a  century  elapsed  before  any  further  progress 
was  made  in  a  western  direction.  At  the  end  of  that  time,  a  Norwe- 
gian named  Thorvald,  with  his  son,  the  famous  Eirek  the  Red,  flying 
their  country  on  account  of  homicide,  took  refuge  in  Iceland.  Hero 
Thorvald  died,  and  Eirek,  his  hands  again  imbued  with  blood,  was 
forced  again  to  take  refuge  on  the  high  seas.  lie  sailed  westward, 
in  quest  of  certain  islands,*  and  ere  long  fell  in  with  the  shores  of 
Greenland  (982).  Coasting  to  its  southern  extremity,  he  selected 
the  site  for  a  colony  at  a  iiarbour  which  lie  viVcd  Eireksfiord  (Eirek's 
creek).  He  then  returned  to  Iceland,  ana  by  his  inviting  descrip- 
tions of  the  newly-found  land,  (which  lie  called  Greenland)  induced 
great  numbers  to  join  him  in  his  projected  settlement.  With  twenty- 
five  vessels,  in  985,  he  again  set  sail,  but  on  account  of  foul  weather, 
only  eleven  reached  the  destined  harbour.  A  flourishing  colony  was 
soon  established,  and  as  it  increased  in  numbers,  fresh  explorations, 
rivalling,  and,  considering  the  means,  surpassing  modern  enterprise, 
were  made  '  i  the  icy  seas  of  the  Arctic  regions.  The  monumenta 
of  these  ancient  explorers  have  been  found  as  far  north  as  latitiu'e 
7tS',  and  it  is  supposed  that  their  surveys  extended  much  further. 

One  Ileriulf,  a  person  of  consideration,  hua  sailed  with  Eire',  r. 
his  second  expedition.  His  son,  named  Biarni,  was  absent  in  i^or- 
way  at  the  time,  and  on  hia  return  to  Iceland,  found  that  his  father 
had  departed  for  the  newly-discovered  region.  He  was  a  man  of 
great  courage  ii-  1  enterprise,  and,  vowing  that  he  would  spend  the 

*  "The  rocka  r.f  \j      -hh  '." — !oi>^  for  nine  hutxlred  years,  to  geography,  aiid 
only  recovered  by  u  r(  v  :    vnpflditijs. 


X 


TIIK  NORTHMEN    IN   AMKRIOA. 


19 


winter  with  his  father,  as  he  hud  alwrftya  done,  hi*  forth  to  find  the 
little  settlement  on  the  unknown  ahorefl  of  Greenland.  A  north- 
eaut  gale  flpning  up,  and  for  man}  '  lys  he  wtus  Irivfn  before  it,  with- 
out seeing  land.  At  last  he  fell  in  witli  a  coast  in  the  w.-si,  w  ^xlcd 
and  somewhat  hilly.  No  landing  was  iniul  ■,  and  the  anxious  mari 
ners,  sailing  for  two  days  to  the  northward,  found  nnotlu-r  Imul, 
low  and  level,  and  overgrown  with  woods.  Not  rerogni/  n^  the 
mom. tail  <  and  the  icebergs  whieh  he  expected  to  find,  Bianii,  with 
f»  c'llri  wi  it  wind,  for  three  days  more  sailed  northerly.  Ho  then 
ci  ine  up'),,  a  great  island,  with  high  mountains  and  much  ice,  hut 
mndo  no  attempt  to  Jand  on  its  desolate  and  forbiddifig  shores. 
Fo. Todays  more,  driven  before  a  violent  wind  from  the  south-west, 
ho  continued  his  voyage  to  higher  latitudes,  and  at  the  end  of  that 
time,  by  a  piece  of  singular  good  fortune,  chanced  to  light  on  the 
very  location  of  the  Icelandic  settlement. 

From  the  internal  evidence  afforded  by  the  dates  and  the  course 
of  this  remarkable  voyage,  as  well  as  from  the  corroboration  of  suh 
sequent  expeditions,  it  would  appear  that  these  Jj^mpcst-driven  mar- 
iners, long  scudding  before  a  north-east  gale,  yet  heading  to  the 
westward  as  much  as  possible,  finally  brought  up  somewhere  on  the 
shores  of  New  England.  The  first  land  seen,  judging  from  the 
descriptions,  was  probably  Nantucket  or  Cape  Cod.  Two-days' 
sailing  would  easily  bring  them  to  the  level  and  forest-covered 
shores  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  three  more  to  the  bleak  and  precipitous 
coast  of  Newfoundland.  From  that  island  to  the  southern  extremity 
of  Greenland,  the  distance  is  but  six  hundred  miles,  which  a  vessel, 
running  before  a  favourable  gale,  might  readily  accomplish  within 
the  given  time.  To  no  other  region  of  coast  in  the  vicinity  ■)f 
Greenland  will  the  dates  and  descriptions  so  accurately  apply,  ard 
little  doubt  can  exist  that  America,  by  this  accidental  voyage,  was 
first  laid  open  to  m<,  a  of  European  race. 

About  ten  years  afterwards,  Biarni  made  a  voyage  to  Norway, 
where  the  account  of  his  discoveries  excited  much  interest;  and 
when  Leif  the  son  of  Eric,  four  years  later,  went  to  the  court  of 
Olaf  Tryggvason,  king  of  that  country,  he  heard  the  adventurer 
much  blamed  for  neglecting  to  prosecute  his  discoveries.  Stimulated 
by  these  conferences,  he  nsolved  to  attempt  a  voyage  in  quest  of 
the  new  lands;  aiul  having  received  baptism  with  all  his  crew, 
returned  to  Gr<<"iln  id,  Ix'nring  with  him  the  germ  of  Qorthem  Chris- 
tianitv,  and  the  spirit  of  enterprise  and  di.scovery. 


-^s 


I 


20 


TIIK  PKOPLE'8    BOOK  OF  IlISTOKV. 


I; 


He  bought  the  vessel  of  Bianii,  ami,  with  thirty-five  men,  sonic 
of  whom  may  have  been  on  the  former  voyage,  in  the  year  1000, 
set  sail  in  search  of  the  desired  region.  He  first  came  in  sight  of 
the  mountainous  and  sterile  coast  last  seen  hy  Biarni,  and  landed,  but 
found  little  or  no  traces  of  vegetation.  Naming  it  Ilellu-land — "the 
land  of  broad  stones"  (a  name  strikingly  descriptive  of  the  shores  of 
Newfoundland),  he  proceeded  southerly  to  the  low  and  wooded  coasts 
of  Nova  Scotia,  which  he  called  Markland — "the  land  of  woods." 
Next  he  came  to  an  island  (probably  Nantucket)  lying  opposite  to 
a  north-east  projection  of  the  main  land.  Between  this  island  and 
the  promontory  he  steered  westward,  remarking  the  shoals  and  cur- 
rents which  still  render  difficult  the  navigation  of  that  passage. 

Keeping  westward,  the  voyagers  "passed  up  a  river,  and  tRence 
into  a  lake."  This  channel,  it  would  seem,  was  the  Seaconnet  river, 
the  eastern  outlet  of  Narragansett  bay,  and  leading  to  the  beautiful 
lake-like  expanse  of  water  now  known  as  Mount  Hope  Bay.  On 
the  shores  of  this  lake,  they  built  habitations  and  passed  the  winter, 
fishing  for  salmo^-which  abounded,  and  charmed  with  the  compara- 
tive mildness  of  the^climate.  On  the  shortest  day,  the  sun  remained 
above  the  horizon  from  half-past  seven  in  the  morning  to  half-past 
four  in  the  afternoon — a  circumstance  indicating  the  latitude  with 
almost  absolute  certainty,  and,  alk>wio|||br  slight  inaccuracy  in  their 
computation,  corresponding  to  the  situation  of  Mount  Hope  Bay. 

In  exploring  the  country  on  their  arrival,  one  Tyrker,  a  German, 
stayed  late,  and  the  others  went  in  search  of  him.  They  found  him 
in  ecstacios  of  joy  at  the  discovery  of  a  vine  laden  with  fruit — the 
delicious  flavor  of  which  had  so  transported  his  thoughts  to  liis 
native  land  (the  land  of  the  grape)  that  for  some  time  he  could 
answer  them  only  in  German.  Great  quantities  of  this  pleasant 
fruit  were  found,  and  these  natives  of  the  chilling  north,  delighted 
at  the  unaccustomed  luxury,  filled  their  large  boat  with  a  plentiful 
supply.  All  the  early  voyagers  to  this  coast,  speak  of  the  profusion 
of  wild  grapes  with  which  it  abounds.  Martha's  Vineyard  and  the 
Vineyard  Sound,  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  no  doubt  received  their 
names  from  this  circumstance.  Leif,  in  joy  at  its  delicious  produc- 
tions, bestowed  on  it  tho  name  of  Vinland  the  Good — a  riame  which 
it  bears  in  all  the  ancient  chronicles  and  geographies.  In  the  spring 
of  1001,  with  his  gra|)e8  and  a  freight  of  tiu»ber,  he  made  his  way 
back  to  Greenland,  where,  in  commemoration  of  his  enterprise  and 
success,  he  was  ever  after  called  "Luif  the  Lucky."     During  the 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA. 


21 


ensuing  winter,  by  the  death  of  his  father,  Eirek,  he  succeeded  to 
the  chief  authority  in  Greenland. 

When  spring  came  on  (1002)  Thorvald,  his  younger  brother,  a 
man  of  great  courage  and  enterprise,  with  thirty  companions,  set 
sail  for  Vinland ;  but  owing  to  his  death  on  the  return,  few  particu- 
lars of  this  voyage,  perhaps  the  most  interesting  and  important  of 
his  day,  have  survived.  With  his  company,  he  arrived  at  Leifsbu- 
dir  (Leifs  booths),  where  his  brother  had  encamped,  and  there 
passed  the  winter.  The  next  spring  (1003)  he  explored  the  coast 
in  a  south-weet  direction  for  a  great  distance,  proceeding,  it  has  been 
thought,  as  far  as  the  Carolinas.  The  coast,  it  is  correctly  stated, 
was  mostly  wooded,  with  white,  sandy  shores. 

During  the  summer  (1004)  Thorvald,  with  a  part  of  his  crew, 
passed  around  Cape  Cod  to  the  northward,  in  quest  of  fresh  discov- 
eries. Here  his  vessel  was  stranded  and  compelled  to  stop  for 
repairs;  and  the  adventurer,  setting  up  the  keel  of  his  ship  on  the 
promontory,  named  it  Kialar-ness  (Keel  Cape)  in  commemoration 
of  the  accident.  Thence  sailing  west,  he  soon  made  land,  somewhere, 
it  would  seem,  not  far  from  Boston.  The  Northmen  landed  on  a 
pleasant  promontory,  and,  meeting  with  several  of  the  Skrcellings  or 
natives,  killed  them.  To  revenge  this  injury,  the  savages  soon  gath- 
ered in  great  numbers,  and  fiercely  attacked  the  intruders.  Thorvald 
was  mortally  wounded  by  an  arrow,  which,  passing  between  his 
shield  and  the  ship's  side,  struck  him  in  the  arm-pit.  Feeling  him- 
self dying,  he  charged  his  comrades  "to  return  home  as  quickly  as 
possible ;  but  me  you  shall  carry  to  the  promontory  which  seemed 
to  me  so  pleasant  a  place  to  dwell  in ;  perhaps  the  words  which  fell 
from  me  shall  prove  true,  and  I  shall  indeed  abide  there  for  a  season. 
There  bury  me,  and  place  a  cross  at  my  head,  and  another  at  my 
feet,  and  call  that  place  for  evermore  Kross-a-ness"  (Cape  of  the 
Crosses).  He  died,  and  his  companions,  having  fulfilled  his  com- 
mands, returned  to  Leifsbudir,  whence,  with  a  cargo  of  dried  grapes, 
the  next  spring  (lOOo)  they  sailed,  and  arrived  in  safety  at  Eireks- 
fiord.  Such  are  the  brief  details  which  have  survived  of  a  voyage, 
no  doubt  the  most  extended  and  enterpr-sing  of  any  undertaken  by 
the  Northmen. 

Thorstein,  Eirek's  third  son,  next  assumed  the  adventure,  desirous 
of  achieving  fresh  discoveries,  and  of  bringing  home  the  body  of 
his  brother.  But  after  tossing  at  sea  a  whole  summer,  with  his  wife 
Gudrid,  uncertain  of  his  whereabouts,  in  the  autumn  he  made  a 


h'. 


r! 


i 


22 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOKY. 


uoit  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Greenland,  where,  not  long  after,  ho 
(lied.  Gudrid,  his  widow,  famous  for  her  beauty  and  discretion, 
went  to  dwell  at  Brattahlid,  in  the  house  of  Leif,  her  brother-in-law. 


CXIADTITPTT 
XliirXJCiiU      XX. 

THB  TOTAOE  OP   THORPINN  KARL8EFNI. —  WORSHIP  OP  THB   GOD 

THOR  IN  AMERICA.  —  TRANSIENT  SETTLEMENTS.  —  FIGHT  WITH 

THE  INDIANS. — RETURN.  —  NOBLE  CONDUCT  OP  BIARNI  GRI- 

MOLFSON.  —  MENTION   OP  VINLAND   IN  MANY   ANCIENT 

CHRONICLES.  —  THB  STORY   OP   BIORN  ASBRANDSON. 

ICELANDIC  REMAINS. — A  CONJECTURED  WELSH  COLONY. 

« 

Akotuer  adventurous  mariner,  ere  long,  undertook  the  enterprise. 
Thorfinn  Karlsefni,  or  The  AMever,  an  Icelander  of  wealth  and  fam- 
ily, in  the  autumn  of  1006,  sailed  on  a  voyage  of  commerce  with  a 
large  company  in  two  ships  for  Greenland.  They  met  with  kind 
entertainment  from  Leif,  and  passed  a  merry  winter,  Thorfinn  being 
married  to  Gudrid.  Much  talk  was  held  concerning  Vinland,  and 
us  spring  came  on,  a  fresh  expedition  was  planned.  Three  vessels 
were  prepared,  aboard  which  went  Thorfinn  and  his  wife,  with  his 
friends,  Snorri  Thorbrandson,  Biarni  Grimolfson  and  others,  Frey- 
dis,  the  daughter  of  Eirek,  with  her  husband  ThorvanI,  and  many 
others,  amounting  in  all  to  an  hundred  and  sixty  souls.  A  variety 
of  live  stock  was  taken  on  board,  for  the  use  of  the  projected  colony; 
and  in  the  sj)ring  of  1007,  the  little  fleet  set  sail. 

Touching  at  several  points,  the  voyagers  came  to  Ilellu-land,  with 
its  vast  flat  stones,  thence  to  Markland,  and  so  to  Kialar-ncss,  where 
they  found  the  keel  lately  set  up  by  the  ill-fated  Thorvald.  Coast- 
ing along  the  des<jlate  shores  of  Cape  Cod  (which  they  called  Fur- 
du.strandir — "Long,"  or  "Wonderful  Shores,")  they  came  to  a  bay, 
and  ])ut  on  shore  two  Scot",  a  man  and  a  woman,  whom  King  Olaf 
had  given  Leif,  and  who  were  "swifter  of  foot,"  we  are  told,  "tlian 
wild  animals."  These  light-footed  couriers  ran  a  considerable  distance 
inland,  and  returned  with  a  bunch  of  grapes  and  an  ear  of  corn. 

Keeping  along  shore,  the  explorers  canu;  to  a  bay,  with  an  island 
o])posit<.^,  wliicli,  on  account  of  the  strength  of  the  current,  they  called 


THE    NORTHMEN    IN    AMEEICA. 


23 


Straum-fiord,  or  Bay  of  Streams,  and  which,  it  is  probable,  was  what 
is  now  known  as  Buzzard's  Bay.  Here,  finding  good  pasturage  for 
their  cattle,  they  disembarked,  and  passed  the  winter.  Soon  after 
their  landing,  a  son  was  born  to  Thorfinn  and  Gudrid.  This 
child,  Snorri  Thorfinnson,  probably  the  first  born  in  America  of 
European  parents,  became  the  founder  of  a  long  line  of  distinguished 
descendants.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned  the  learned  bishop 
Thorlak  Runolfson,  his  grandson,  who  probably  compiled  the 
accounts  of  these  voyages,  and  Thorwaldsen,  the  famous  sculptor  of 
our  own  day. 

A  singular  incident  illustrates  the  superstition  of  the  age  and  the 
recency  of  the  conversion  of  these  people  to  Christianity.  The  god 
Thor,  for  the  first  and  perhaps  the  last  time,  was  worshipped  in  the 
Western  Hemisphere.  It  haj)pened  in  this  wise.  There  had  sailed 
in  the  expedition,  says  the  ancient  narrative,  one  "Thorhall,  com- 
monly called  the  Hunter,  who  had,  for  many  years,  been  the  hunts- 
man of  Eirek  during  the  summer,  and  his  steward  during  the  winter. 
This  Thorhall  was  a  man  of  gigantic  stature  and  of  great  strength, 
and  swarthy  in  complexion ;  he  was  a  man  of  very  few  words,  and 
when  he  did  speak,  it  was  chiefly  in  a  railing  way;  to  Eirek  he  had 
ever  given  evil  counsel;  and  he  was  besides  a  very  indifferent  Chris- 
tian.   He  possessed,  however,  much  knowledge  of  uninhabited  lands." 

The  winter  proving  severe,  the  colonists  endured  much  suffering 
from  scarcity,  and  all  their  prayers  appeared  vain.  In  this  time  of 
famine,  Thorhall  disappeared,  and  for  three  days  fruitless  search  was 
made  for  him.  "On  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day,"  proceeds  the 
narrative,  "Thorfinn  and  Biarni  Grimolfson  found  him  lying  on  the 
top  of  a  rock.  There  he  lay,  stretched  out,  with  his  eyes  open, 
blowing  through  his  mouth  and  nose,  and  mumbling  somewhat  to 
himself.  They  asked  him  why  he  had  gone  there.  He  answered 
that  it  was  no  business  of  theirs — that  he  was  old  enough  to  take 
care  of  liiuiself  without  their  troubling  themselves  with  his  affairs. 
They  asked  him  to  return  home  with  them,  which  he  did.  A  short 
time  after,  a  whale  was  east  ashore,  and  they  all  ran  down  eagerly 
to  cut  it  up;  but  none  knew  wliat  kind  of  whale  it  was;  even  Thor- 
finn, though  well  acquainted  witli  whales,  did  not  know  it.  The 
cooks  dressed  the  whale,  aiul  they  all  eat  of  it,  but  were  all  taken 
sick  iinnuHliately  afterwards.  Then  said  Thorhall,  'Now  you  sec 
that  Thor  is  more  ready  to  give  aid  than  your  Christ.  This  food  is 
the  reward  of  a  hymn  which  I  composed  to  Thor,  my  god,  who 


.•^' 


24 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


varelj  forsakes  me.'  When  they  heard  this,  none  would  eat  any 
more;  and  so  they  threw  all  the  remainder  of  the  flesh  from  the 
rocJcs,  commending  themselves  to  God." 

This  Thorhall,  in  the  spring  of  the  following  year  (1008),  set  forth 
with  a  few  companions  to  sail  around  Kialar-ness  and  make  discov- 
eries ;  but  was  driven  to  sea  by  westerly  gales,  and  finally,  it  is  said, 
reached  the  shores  of  Ireland.  Thorfinn,  with  the  remainder,  in  all 
an  hundred  and  fifty-one,  pursued  his  course  westward,  and  came  to 
Leifsbudir.  The  region  in  that  vicinity  was  called  by  the  North- 
men, Hop.  The  Indian  name  was  Haup,  and  the  "lake"  itself,  to 
this  day,  is  called  Mount  Hope  Bay — perhaps  a  mere  coincidence, 
but  certainly  a  curious  one.  Here  they  had  sight  of  numerous  sav- 
ages, who  approached  in  their  canoes,  and,  after  landing  and  staring 
at  the  strangers  with  astonishment,  embarked  and  retired  beyond  a 
promontory  in  the  south-west.  The  summer  and  winter  were  passed 
at  Leifsbudir,  the  latter  season  proving  so  temperate  that  tiie  cattle 
remained  in  the  open  fields  without  shelter.  The  climate,  it  is  prob- 
able, in  that  remote  period,  was  somewhat  milder  in  those  regions, 
than  it  is  at  present. 

In  the  spring  of  1009,  great  numbers  of  the  natives  resorted  to 
the  colony  for  traflic — strips  of  red  cloth  being  eagerly  sought,  and 
7)iilk  porrid/je  affording  them  excessive  delight.  But  the  sudden 
appearance  and  bellowing  of  a  bull  frightened  them  all  to  their 
canoes.  A  few  weeks  afterwards  they  returned  in  great  force,  rais- 
ing a  shrill  cry  (probably  the  war  whoop)*  and  giving  signals  of 
defiance.  Thorfinn  and  his  men  raised  the  red  .shield  (the  northern 
emblem  of  war)  and  a  fierce  battle  commenced.  In  the  midst  of  the 
conflict,  Freydis,  the  daughter  of  Eirek,  seeing  her  countrymen  give 
way,  rushed  out  of  her  dwelling,  and  rej)roached  them.  The  tercel- 
lings  pursued  her,  and  being  near  her  time,  she  could  not  run  fast. 
"She  saw,"  says  the  chronicle,  "a  man  lying  dead.  This  was  Thor- 
brand  the  son  of  Snorri,  in  whose  head  a  Jlat  stone  was  sticking.  His 
sword  lay  naked  by  his  side.  This  she  seized,  and  prepared  to  de- 
fend herself.  The  Skrcellings  came  up  with  her.  She  struek  her 
brca.st  with  the  naked  sword,  which  so  astonisiied  the  Skra'llings, 
that  they  fled  back  to  their  canoes,  and  rowed  off  as  flist  as  j)ossible." 
Many  of  the  savages  were  killed,  and  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that 
the  English,  on  their  first  arrival  in  this  part  of  the  country,  found 
among  the  Indians  a  very  distinct  tradition  of  this  conflict,  of  the 

♦  "  Skra-lingi  xalde  acute  ululerunl,"  snjH  the  I^tin  translation  of  tlic  Norse  MS. 


'! 


THE  NOBTHMEN  IN  AMERICA. 


25 


ship  of  the  invaders,  &c.,  though,  of  course,  at  a  loss  to  what  period 
or  what  people  to  assign  it. 

Convinced  that  this  place  was  too  perilous  for  his  colony,  Thorfinn 
now  broke  up  his  encampment,  and  returned  to  his  former  quarters 
at  Straum-fiord.  Abundant  supplies  were  found,  and  he  sailed  round 
Kialar-ness  in  search  of  the  missing  Thorhall,  but  without  success. 
In  the  spring  of  the  following  year  (1010)  the  whole,  or  a  consider- 
able portion  of  the  company,  in  the  two  remaining  ships,  set  sail  for 
Greenland.  That  of  Thorfinn  arrived  safely  at  Eireksfiord;  but  the 
other,  commanded  by  Biarni  Grimolfson,  was  driven  to  sea,  and 
being  riddled  with  worms,  began  to  sink.  Biarni,  with  half  the 
ship's  company,  gained  by  lot  the  privilege  of  taking  to  the  boat; 
but  seeing  the  distress  of  a  young  Icelander  left  on  board,  relin- 
quished his  place,  going  back  into  the  ship  and  placing  the  other  in 
the  boat — "for  I  see,"  he  said,  quietly,  "that  you  are  fond  of  life." 
This  generous  action,  and  these  few  words,  the  key  of  a  brave  and 
meditative  spirit,  are  all  that  survive  of  this  old  Northern  chief,  of 
whom  one  could  wish  to  have  known  more.  The  boat  arrived  in 
safety,  but  Biarni  and  his  companions  doubtless  perished  in  their 
foundered  vessel. 

Thorfinn  and  his  wife,  having  attained  much  fame  by  their  adven- 
tures, proceeded  to  Iceland,  where  they  took  up  their  residence,  and 
where,  as  well  as  in  Denmark,  their  descendants  attained  high  honor 
and  consideration. 

In  1011  Freydis  and  her  husband,  with  some  Norway  merchants, 
made  another  voyage  to  the  same  region.  Indeed,  to  quote  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Norse  MS.,  "  Expeditions  to  Vinland  became  now  very 
frequent  matters  of  consideration,  for  that  expedition  was  commonly 
esteemed  both  lucrative  and  honorable."  In  these  ancient  records, 
for  several  centuries,  repeated  allusions  are  made  to  the  country, 
whose  existence  appears  to  have  been  generally  known  to  the  nations 
of  Northern  Europe.  In  an  old  Faroese  ballad,  Iloldan  and  Finn, 
two  Swedish  princes,  are  chronicled  as  crusaders  into  Vinland,  for 
the  love  of  Ingeborge,  daughter  of  the  king  of  Ireland.  It  is 
entered  on  the  "Annals  of  Iceland,"  (a  contemporaneous  authority), 
that  in  1121,  Eirek,  first  bishop  of  Greenland,  sailed  from  that  coun- 
try to  Vinland — it  may  have  been  to  exercise  his  spiritual  offices  in 
belialf  of  colonists  settled  there.  In  1347,  according  to  the  same 
nuthority,  a  Greenland  vessel,  returning  from  Markland  (Nova-Scotia) 
\v;is  ilrivcn  ])y  westerly  gales  to  the  shores  of  Iceland.  ^ 


26 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


Ill  1285,  Adalbrand  and  Thorvald,  two  brothers,  whose  names  are 
well  known  in  Icelandic  chronicles,  touched  upon  a  coast  which, 
from  their  description,  seems  to  have  been  the  Hellu-land  of  Leif ; 
and  the  name  of  "Nyja-fundu-land,"  (Newfoundland)  which  they 
gave  it,  indicates  that  it  was  considered  as  a  country  already  discov- 
ered. It  bears  the  same  name,  in  English,  at  the  present  day.  Three 
years  afterwards,  Eirek  of  Norway,  interested  by  the  particulars  of 
their  cruise,  sent  another  expedition  in  the  same  direction,  the  details 
of  which  have  not  survived.  Many  other  voyages,  casual  or  inten- 
tional, though  unrecorded  or  lost  to  history,  were  undoubtedly  made 
in  the  course  of  the  four  centuries  during  which  Scandinavian  col- 
onies flourished  in  Greenland. 

in  the  fate  of  those  colonies  was  involved  the  history  of  Vinland, 
excepting  the  few  particulars  preserved  in  Iceland,  most  of  which 
we  have  briefly  stated.  A  vast  barrier  of  ice,  which,  according  to 
philosophers,  at  certain  periods  advances  southward  from  the  pole, 
early  in  the  fifteenth  century  cut  off  all  communication  between  the 
parent-country  and  its  distant  colonies  of  Greenland.  When  last 
heard  of,  these  consisted  of  two  hundred  and  eighty  villages ;  but 
from  the  year  1406,  for  nearly  three  centuries,  nothing  was  learned 
of  their  fate,  and  hardly  a  bark,  except  that  of  some  adventurous 
whaler,  approached  the  dreary  shores  of  Greenland.  Extensive 
ruins  have  since  been  discovered  along  the  whole  line  of  coast,  but 
no  record  of  the  fate  of  their  inhabitants  has  survived.  Isolated 
from  any  succour  from  Iceland  or  Europe,  and  pinched  by  tho 
increasing  coldness  of  the  seasons,  they  probably  perished  by  degrees, 
and  finally  became  extinct.  Early  in  the  last  century,  some  colonies 
were  again  planted  by  Denmark  in  the  same  inhospitable  region. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  personages  whose  existence  is  well 
known  to  history,  are  occasionally  described,  in  old  Norse  manu- 
scripts, as  having  voyaged  to  Vinland  and  other  lands  lying  west  of 
the  Atlantic.  "To  the  South  of  habitable  Greenland,"  says  an 
anciciit  work  on  geography,  " there  <irc  uninhabited  and  wild  tracts, 
and  enormous  icebergs.  The  country  of  the  Skrcellings  lies  beyond 
these;  Markland  bc^'ond  this,  and  Vinland  the  Good  beyond  the 
last.  Next  to  this,  and  sotnething  beyond  it,  lies  Albania,  that  is, 
Iluitraniannaland,  whither,  formerly,  vessels  came  from  Ircliind. 
There  several  Irislimen  and  Icelaiulcrs  saw  and  rccogiii/cd  Ari,  the 
son  of  Mar  aiul  Kollu,  of  Roykiaiicss,  concerning  whom  notliin<^ 
had  been  heard  for  a  long  time,  and  who  had  been  made  their  chief 


THE  NOBTUMEN  IN   AMEBICA. 


27 


bj  the  inhabitants  of  the  land."  Thia  Ari  Marson,  it  i8  elsewhere 
stated,  in  983,  was  driven  by  tempests  to  a  region  lying  far  west  of 
Ireland,  and  called  Huitramanualand,  or  Irland  it  Mikla  (Ireland 
the  Great). 

A  most  romantic  account  is  given,  in  another  chronicle,  of  tho 
adventures  and  fate  of  Biorn  Asbrandson,  an  Icelandic  hero,  noted 
for  his  exploits  in  Fomerania  and  Denmark.  Beturning  to  his  native 
island,  he  fell  in  love  with  Thurid,  wife  of  an  insular  magnate,  and 
in  the  frays  provoked  by  the  jealousy  of  the  latter,  slew  several  of 
his  assailants.  Like  Eirek  the  Red,  he  was  compelled  to  betake 
himself  to  the  ocean,  and  accordingly,  about  the  year  998,  set  sail, 
says  the  narrative,  "with  a  north-tast  wind,  which  wind  prevailed 
for  a  great  part  of  that  summer.  Of  the  fate  of  that  ship  nothing 
was  for  a  long  time  heard."  More  than  thirty  years  afterwards,  one 
Gudleif  Gudlaugson,  a  noted  sea-rover,  returning  from  Dublin  to 
Iceland,  "fell  in,"  says  another  chronicle,  "with  north-east  and  east 
winds,  and  was  driven  far  into  the  ocean  towards  the  south-west  and 
west,  so  that  no  land  was  seen,  the  summer  being  now  far  spent. 
Many  prayers  were  offered  by  Gudleif  and  his  men  that  they  might 
escape  their  perils;  and  at  length  they  saw  land.  It  was  of  great 
extent,  and  they  knew  not  what  land  it  was." 

Landing,  they  were  seized  by  the  natives,  and  were  carried  before 
a  great  assembly,  that  their  fate  might  be  decided.  From  this  dan- 
gerous situation  they  were  rescued  by  an  aged  man,  to  whom  all 
present  paid  respect,  and  who,  to  their  surprise,  addressed  them  in 
the  Icelandic  tongue.  He  made  many  inquiries  concerning  the 
people  of  Iceland,  and  especially  concerning  Thurid.  He  sent  a 
golden  ring  to  her,  and  a  sword  to  her  son  Kiartan,  but  refused  to 
tell  his  name,  and  hastened  the  departure  of  his  guests  from  the 
dangerous  coast.  In  the  autumn,  they  succeeded  in  reaching  Ireland, 
and  thence,  in  the  following  spring,  sailed  to  their  native  country, 
where  they  delivered  the  ring  to  the  aged  Thurid  and  the  sword  to 
Kiartan,  of  whom  Biorn  had  been  commonly  reputed  the  father. 
There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  giver  was  the  long-lost  Icelandic 
champion,  and  that  the  coast  on  which  he  and  Gudleif  were  thrown, 
judging  from  the  description,  was  somewhere  on  the  Atlantic  coast 
of  America,  probably  below  New  England. 

It  only  remains  to  be  added  that  on  the  Assoonet  or  Taunton 
River,  near  Dighton,  (Mass.)  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  Mount 
Hope  Buy,  is  a  sculptured  inscription,  of  great  antiquity,  commonly 


1 


28 


THK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


called  the  "  Written  Rock,"  and  recording,  it  'aeems  more  than  prob- 
able, the  visits  of  the  ancient  Northmen  to  this  region.  The  greater 
portion  consists  of  Indian  hieroglyphics,  but  there  is  one  genuine 
Icelandic  fragment,  representing,  with  little  question,  "one  hundred 
and  fifty-one  men,"  the  exact  number,  it  may  be  remembered,  with 
which  Thorfinn,  after  the  sailing  of  Thorhall  and  his  eight  compan- 
ions, came  to  this  spot.  Other  portions,  among  which  sanguine  anti- 
quarians have  imagined  that  they  discovered  the  name  of  Thorfinn 
himself,  remain  undeciphered. 

It  has  been  thought  probable  by  sagacious  archaeologists  that  other 
colonies  of  European  origin,  from  choice  or  accident,  may  have  been 
founded  in  the  New  World,  anterior  to  its  discovery  by  Columbus. 
Mr.  Gatlin,  the  eminent  Indian  painter  and  historian,  has,  in  an 
ingenious  essay,  made  it  evident,  that  the  famous  Mandan  tribe, 
lately  extinguished  by  the  ravages  of  small-pox,  may  have  been,  in 
part,  of  Welsh  origin,  and  perhaps  descended  from  the  adventurers, 
who  early  in  the  fourteenth  century  sailed  westward,  with  Madoc, 
prince  of  Wales,  and  never  regained  their  native  land.  The  com- 
plexion of  these  people,  though  somewhat  modified  by  intermixture 
with  aboriginal  blood,  was  light,  and  their  hair  and  features  resem- 
bled those  of  Europeans.  Their  language,  in  some  respects,  bore  an 
extraordinary  similitude  to  the  Welsh,  and  their  light  boats,  formed 
of  hides  stretched  upon  a  frame,  were  almost  identical  in  their  con- 
struction with  the  "coracles"  still  used  on  the  Severn  and  the  Wye. 
This  hypothesis,  supported  by  much  ingenious  argument  and  illus- 
tration, is  certainly  coherent,  and  may,  very  likely,  be  correct 


PART    II. 


#MNA^^^^^^*WW^WM^^^^^^A^^^*V%^M»<Vl 


THE  SPANIARDS  II  AMEEICA. 

'i}it  fimmm  nf  CnlnmlmH,  anil  Irttlmfnt  nf  tjn  WvA  Mm. 

BARLT  LIFE  OP  COLUMBUS. — HIS  EXPERIENCE  AND   ATTAIN- 
MENTS.—  GENERAL  PASSION  FOR  DISCOYERl.  —  FORMATION 
OF   HIS  SCHEME. — NEGOTIATIONS   WITH  THE  COURT    OF 
PORTUGAL. — TREACHERY   OF    THE   KINO. — COLUMBUS 
IN  SPAIN. HIS  POVERTY. LA  RABIDA. — APPLI- 
CATION TO  THE  COURT  OF  SPAIN.  —  DELAYS. — THE 
COUNCIL  OF  SALAMANCA,  —  IGNORANCE  AND 
BIGOTRY  OF  ITS  MEMBERS. 


Christopher  Columbus,*  the  most  famous  mariner  of  all  time, 
bad  his  birth  in  the  city  of  Genoa,  about  the  year  1435,  of  obscure, 
but  respectable  parentage.  Ilis  early  education  was  good,  and,  for 
a  short  time,  he  enjoyed  the  advantiige  of  studying  at  the  renowned 
university  of  Padua.  At  the  age  of  fourteen,  like  most  of  the  youth 
of  his  native  city,  he  went  to  sea,  and  for  many  years  only  occa- 
sional glimpses  are  caught  of  the  adventurous  coreer  which  he  pur- 
sued. He  was  engaged  in  commerce  to  the  Levant,  and  in  the  naval 
warfare  so  long  protracted  in  the  Mediterranean  among  the  rival 
nations  inhabiting  its  shores.  In  the  year  1470,  already  of  middle 
age,  and  possessed  of  a  great  store  of  maritime  knowledge,  he  betook 
himself  to  Portugal. 

*  Il'm  orijriDikl  nnnic  wiis  Chr'mtofero  Colombo — rendered,  according  to  the  Spanisli 
idiom,  Criatovul  Colon — und  latinized  into  Columbus. 


riitfrj^. 


',V- 


80 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


Tlint  nation,  justly  entitled  to  the  glory  of  the  first  revival  of  dis- 
covery and  geography,  was  then  borne  on  in  the  full  tide  of  enter- 
prise and  success.  Under  the  auspices  of  the  adventurous  and 
enlightened  Prince  ITcnry,  much  of  the  African  coast  had  been 
explored,  and  the  Azores  ond  the  Cape  do  Verd  islands  had  been 
rescued  from  the  oblivion  of  the  ocean.  His  grand  and  arduous 
projcijt,  the  circumnavigation  of  Africa,  and  n  niaiitime  intercourse 
with  the  shores  of  India,  deferred  by  his  death  (1673),  was  afterwards, 
with  brilliant  success,  completed  by  the  sovereign  who  succeeded  him. 

The  appearance  of  Columbus,  at  this  time,  is  described  as  replete 
with  dignity  and  courtesy.  His  hair  was  already  quite  white,  and 
his  demeanour  was  distinguished  by  grave  and  gentle  authority.  He 
was  a  devout  Catholic,  ard  strictly  attached  to  all  the  offices  of  reli- 
gion. Soon  after  his  arrival,  he  married  the  daughter  of  one  Pales- 
trello,  a  navigator  distingui.shed  in  the  service  of  Prince  Henry,  and 
some  time  governor  of  Porto  Santo,  the  lesser  of  the  Madeiras.  The 
charts  and  journals  of  the  deceased  mariner,  delivered  into  his  pos- 
session, awakened  in  his  mind  a  strong  interest  in  African  discovery. 
He  sailed  occasionally  to  that  coast,  and,  with  his  wife,  resided  fo"" 
some  time  at  Porto  Santo.  His  means  were  narrow,  and  he  gained 
precarious  living,  for  the  most  part,  by  making  maps  and  charts,  an 
ccctipation  for  which,  by  his  education,  his  extended  experience  an  1 
close  observation,  he  wa-  eminently  qualified. 

In  this  obscure  and  humble  way  of  life,  his  mind  was  gr.idually 
and  slowly  elaborating  a  scheme  the  most  grand  and  momentous 
which  has  ever  been  conceived  by  human  genius,  or  carried  out  by 
human  courage  and  perseverance.  His  occupation  naturally  incited 
his  thoughts  to  conjecture  and  speculation  concerning  the  vast  tracts 
of  ocean  in  which  no  sail  had  ever  been  spread,  and  of  whose 
unknown  shores  no  chart  had  ever  been  constructed.  Again  and 
again  had  mariners,  driven  westward  a  little  beyond  their  accustomed 
course,  told  wondrous  stories  of  mountainous  islands,  dimly  looming 
on  the  western  horizon,  but  still  retreating  before  the  bark  of  the 
explorer.  Such  accounts,  delusive  but  inspiriting,  lent  continual 
encouragement  to  the  theory  which  he  had  formed  and  the  vast 
design  which  he  was  projecting. 

Though  firmly  believing  in  the  sphericity  of  the  earth,  he  had 
singularly  underrated  its  size* — an  error  shared  by  many  of  the 
learned  of  his  day.     Toscanelli,  a  distinguished  Florentine  savant, 

•  "Tlio  world,"  he  writfH,  "is  littli' — fur  mnnlltT  th.-in  is  fommmily  8ui>j><««til." 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMEBICA. 


81 


to  whom,  in  1474,  he  nnnounced  his  intention  of  sailing  westward 
in  search  of  Cathay  (China),  gave  the  opinion  that  the  distance  could 
not  exceed  four  thousand  miles;  and  the  vast  extent  of  the  Orient, 
as  described  by  Marco  Polo,  appeared  to  confirm  this  hypothesis. 

"Still,  all  was  uncertainty.  The  mysterious  ocean  intervening 
between  the  Asian  and  European  shores  might  be  of  vast  and  innav- 
igable extent,  and  filled  with  new  and  unheard  of  terrors.  The  sail 
might  be  spread  for  tho.se  unknown  regions,  but  who  could  tell  if  it 
should  ever  retrace  the  hazardous  way — if  fearful  seas  and  currents 
would  not  ingulph  the  audacious  keel,  or  some  fixed  and  awful  law 
of  nature  forbid  the  possibility  of  return.  These  very  doubts  and 
marvels  served,  perhaps,  only  as  new  incentives  to  a  mind  alike 
daring,  romantic,  and  practical.  It  is  certain  that  from  the  time 
when  the  project  of  sailing  westward  to  solve  the  grand  problem  of 
the  earth  first  entered  the  mind  of  this  ob.scure  wanderer,  there  com- 
menced a  career  of  patience,  perseverance,  sagacity,  and  courage, 
such  as  the  world,  it  is  probable,  had  never  witnc.s.sed.  Though 
mistaken  in  the  particulars  of  his  geographical  plan,  he  would  seem, 
from  the  finst,  to  have  had  a  premonition  of  the  vastncss  and  real 
grandeur  of  his  future  di.scovery." 

"When  Columbus,"  says  Mr.  Irving,  "had  formed  his  theory,  it  is 
singular  the  firmness  with  which  i*,  became  fixed  in  his  mind,  and 
the  efibct  it  produced  upon  his  character  and  conduct.  He  never 
spoke  with  doubt  or  hesitation,  but  with  as  much  certainty  as  if  his 
eyes  bolield  the  i)romised  land.  No  trial  or  disappointment  could 
afterwards  divert  him  from  the  steady  pursuit  of  his  object.  A  deep 
religious  sentiment  mingled  with  his  meditations,  and  gave  them  at 
times  a  tinge  of  superstition,  but  it  was  of  a  sublime  and  lofty  kind. 
He  looked  upon  himself  as  standing  in  the  hand  of  Heaven,  chosen 
from  among  men  for  the  accomplishment  of  its  high  purpose.  He 
read,  as  he  supposed,  his  contemplated  discovery  foretold  in  Holy 
Writ,  and  shadowed  forth  dark'.y  in  the  mystic  revelations  of  the 
prophets.  The  ends  of  the  earth  were  to  be  brought  together,  and 
all  nations  and  tongues  and  languages  united  under  the  banner  of 
the  Redeemer." 

But  between  the  conception  and  the  fulfilment  of  this  glorious 
undertaking,  a  long  and  miserable  interval  of  disappointment,  vex- 
ation and  delay,  was  destined  to  elapse.  Unable,  from  his  obscure 
position,  to  command  the  means  of  effecting  discovery,  he  still 
ciigerly  sought  for  knowledge  concerning  the  unknown  ocean.     In 


82 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  III8T0RT. 


t 


1477,  he  voyaged  an  hundred  leagues  beyond  Iceland,  probably  to 
the  westward,  and,  it  may  be,  wanted  but  a  little  of  reviving  the 
ancient  discoveries  of  the  Northmen,  and  tracking  the  steps  of  Thor- 
finn  to  the  long-lost  shores  of  Vinland. 

With  the  accession  of  John  II.,  in  1481,  to  the  throne  of  Portugal, 
a  new  and  brilliant  era  of  enterprise  commenced.  That  enlightened 
and  ambitious  sovereign  had  inherited  from  his  predecessor,  Prince 
Henry,  the  noble  passion  for  discovery  and  maritime  adventure. 
The  scheme  for  circumnavigating  Africa  was  resumed — a  scheme, 
in  due  time  crowned  with  the  most  brilliant  and  profitable  success; 
and  the  invention  of  the  astrolabe  or  quadrant — an  invention  under- 
taken directly  in  furtherance  of  naval  adventure — rewarded  the  inge- 
nuity of  the  men  of  science  who  surrounded  him. 

At  tliia  favourable  epoch,  Columbus,  his  project  fully  matured, 
presented  himself  before  the  sovereign,  offering  his  services  in  explor- 
ing the  quickest  route  to  the  long-coveted  shores  of  India.  lie  pro- 
posed to  sail  due  westward,  and  expressed  his  confidence  that  a 
voyage  of  a  thousand  leagues  would  bring  him  to  the  island  of 
Cipango  or  Japan,  famed  from  the  glowing  descriptions  of  Marco 
Polo.  The  compensation  which  he  demanded,  in  event  of  succes.s, 
was  of  a  princely  and  magnificent  nature — the  same,  it  is  probable, 
which  he  afterwards  obtained  from  the  sovereigns  of  Spain,  and  of 
which  penury,  disappointment,  and  the  weariness  of  hope  long 
deferred  never  could  force  him  to  abate  one  jot  or  tittle. 

John,  whose  ear  was  ever  open  to  the  voice  of  enterprise,  referred 
the  project  to  his  learned  men,  by  whom  it  was  summarily  con- 
demned as  chimerical.  The  king,  unsatisfied,  and  stimulated  by  the 
advice  of  his  unprincipled  confoasor,  now  had  the  meanneas  and  per- 
fidy to  attempt  defrauding  the  projector  of  the  glory  and  reward 
of  his  magnificent  invention.  Having  gained  possession  of  the  plans 
and  charts  of  Columbus,  he  privately  dispatched  a  vessel  in  the  pro- 
posed direction.  But  those  so  hastily  called  on  to  undertake  the 
tremen<loua  adventure,  were  not  upheld  by  the  patient  enthusiasm 
of  its  original  author.  The  crew,  meeting  with  stormy  weather, 
became  discouraged,  and  finally,  in  despair,  put  back  into  Lisbon. 
Indignant  at  this  mean  attempt  to  forestall  his  honours,  the  ag- 
grieved projector,  refusing  to  hearken  to  further  overtures,  quitted 
the  court  abruptly,  taking  with  him  his  little  son  Diego  (1484). 
Nothing,  for  some  time,  is  known  of  his  movements,  but  his  rfiap- 
pcarauce  was  in  distress  and  poverty 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


33 


Near  the  little  sea-port  of  Palos,  in  Andalusia,  stood  and  still  stands 
an  ancient  convent,  named  Santa  Maria  de  Rabida.  One  day  a 
wearied  foot-traveller,  leading  a  boy,  stopped  at  the  gate,  and  re-  ' 
quested  of  the  porter  a  little  bread  and  water  for  his  child.  The 
prior,  Juan  Perez,  a  man  of  attainments  and  of  quick  discernment, 
passing  by  chance,  was  struck  with  his  demeanour,  and  still  more 
with  his  conversation.  On  hearing  the  grand  project  of  Columbus 
(for  the  way-farer  was  no  other)  he  was  filled  with  admiration.  The 
wanderer  was  honourablv  entertained  at  the  convent,  and  mi  the 
spring  of  1486,  fortified  with  a  letter  to  Talavera,  the  queen's  con- 
fessor, set  forth  to  try  his  fortunes  at  the  Spanish  court. 

In  that  court,  the  most  brilliant,  perhaps,  in  Europe,  the  cold  and 
selfish  policy  of  Ferdinand  was  relieved  by  the  virtue  and  the  more 
liberal  spirit  of  his  consort,  the  high-minded  Isabella  of  Castile; 
and  it  was  on  her  well-known  love  of  science,  literature,  and  enter- 
prise, that  the  adventurer  founded  his  chief  hopes  of  success.  Utter 
discouragement  attended  his  first  attempts.  The  confessor  looked 
with  no  favour  on  his  scheme.  It  was  long  before  he  could  obtain 
an  audience  before  the  sovereigns,  their  whole  attention  engrossed 
with  domestic  warfare  and  foreign  policy.  During  this  time  he  pa- 
tiently supported  himself  by  his  craft  of  map-making,  and  by  his 
intelligence  and  enthusiasm,  gradually  acquired  influential  friends 
at  court. 

Through  the  good  offices  of  these,  the  desired  audience  was  finally 
obtained,  and  the  sovereigns,  moved  by  his  statements,  resolved  to 
submit  the  prqject  to  a  grand  commission  at  the  University  of  Sala- 
manca. At  that  rciiQwned  seat  of  erudition  were  assembled  the 
most  loarned  and  eminent  scholars  in  the  kingdom,  mostly  friars  and 
church  dignitaries,  before  whom  the  adventurer  was  commanded  to 
unfold  his  projected  undertaking.  In  a  simple,  modest,  and  eloquent 
speech,  he  stated  the  particulars  of  his  scheme;  but  to  his  intense 
disappointment  wtis  encountered  on  all  hands  by  the  most  unworthy 
objections.  Ilis  reverend  auditors,  anxious  to  display  their  own  learn- 
ing and  orthodoxy,  set  up  all  manner  of  frivolous  dogmas,  founded 
on  classic  philosophy  or  ecclesiastic  suV)tlety.  The  unfortunate  inno- 
vator was  overwhelmed  with  a  shower  of  quotations  from  Scripture — 
Psalms  iiiul  prophocii's,  gcspels  and  epistles.  All  the  saints  and 
fathers  of  the  church  wcro  cited  in  opposition  to  his  audacious — nay, 
heretical  conception.  The  earth,  it  was  urged  by  some,  could  not 
be  otherwise  than  flat,  instead  of  round,  seeing  that  in  both  the  Old 
Vol.  III.— S 


34 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIISTOBT. 


and  New  Testaments,  the  Leavens  were  compared  to  a  tent  extended 
over  its  surface.  Others,  admitting  the  possibility  of  its  sphericity, 
'maintained  that  it  was  encircled  by  the  torrid  zone,  an  impassable 
barrier  of  heat,  precluding  all  communication  between  the  antipodes. 
Epicurus  had  affirmed  that  the  southern  hemisphere  was  a  mere 
chaos,  and  Lactantius  Firmianus  had  denied  that  there  were  antipodes 
at  all.  If  there  were,  and  if  a  ship  could  really  slide  in  safety  over 
the  enormous  round,  how  was  she  ever  to  get  up  hill  again?  In 
short,  the  majority  of  his  learned  auditors  "entrenched  themselves 
behind  one  dogged  position ;  that  after  so  many  profound  philoso- 
phers and  cosmographers  had  been  studying  the  form  of  the  world, 
and  so  many  able  navigators  had  been  sailing  about  it  for  several 
thousand  years,  it  was  great  presumption  in  an  ordinary  man  to  sup- 
pose that  there  remained  such  a  vast  discovery  for  him  to  make."  So 
great,  in  fine,  were  the  prejudice,  bigotry,  and  ignorance  of  a  major- 
ity of  the  council,  that,  though  a  few  of  the  more  intelligent  were 
convinced  by  his  arguments  or  persuaded  by  his  eloquence,  the  great 
body  of  the  assembly,  after  several  fruitless  conferences,  utterly 
refused  to  risk  their  reputation  by  any  countenance  to  such  an 
unheard-of  innovation. 


Vj      iLlL      Jtit      X         UU       iHi      Jib  X      X    • 

DELAY  AND  DISAPPOINTMEKf  EXPERIENCED  BY  COLUMBUS.  —  HI8 
PINAL  SUCCESS  AND  TREATY  WITH  THE  COURT  OPSPAIN.  —  OB- 
STACLES TO  THE  PROJECT. —  THE  PIXZOXS. —  SAILING  OF  THK 
EXPEDITION.  —  PARTICULARS  OP  THE  VOYAGE. — PERSE- 
VERANCE OP  COLUMDrs. DISCOVERY  OFGUANAHANI. — 

THE  NATIVES. — ERRONEOUS  EXPECTATIONS  OP  COLUMBUS. 

Year.s  pa.sso<l  by,  and  Columbus,  the  victim  of  hope  deferred, 
still  protracted  his  attfiidaiice  at  the  Spanish  cotirt,  gleuniiig  a  pre- 
carious support  frMtn  lii.s  iiirlii.'itry,  and  occa.^ionally  a.-^si.sted  by  the 
libonility  of  hi.s  patron.s.  lit"  lou;.flit  again.st  the  Moons  in  the  cam- 
paign of  1489,  and,  it  is  said,  with  distinj^uishcd  courage;  but  was 
n'|>catcdly  di.sapjjointod  in  his  hopes  of  obtaining  a  frosh  interview 
with  the  sovereigns.     Itejecting,  from  a  stern  remembrance  of  pswt 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


85 


treachery,  the  renewed  overtures  of  John  II.,  he  dispatched  his 
brother  Bartholomew  to  England,  to  seek  the  aid  of  Henry  VII., 
in  prosecution  of  his  enterprise.  He  also  made  application  to  the 
powerful  dukea  of  Medina  Sidonia  and  Medina  Cieli ;  but,  after  receiv- 
ing some  encouragement,  was  again  thwarted  in  his  wishes,  and  sick 
at  heart,  took  his  way  back  to  the  convent  of  Rabida. 

The  worthy  prior,  grieved  and  scandalized  at  his  ill-success,  again 
bestirred  himself.  Mounting  his  mule,  he  betook  himself  to  court, 
and  by  his  eloquence  so  wrought  upon  the  queen  (whose  confessor 
he  had  formerly  been)  that  she  at  once  recalled  Columbus  to  her 
presence.  The  sovereigns,  with  their  army,  were  then  encamped 
before  Granada,  the  last  stronghold  of  the  unfortunate  Moors;  and 
he  arrived  in  time  to  witness  its  memorable  surrender.  This  long 
and  exhausting  contest  finally  decided,  they  found  more  leisure 
to  listen  to  schemes  of  enterprise,  and  accordingly  appointed  agents 
(among  them  Talavera,  archbishop  of  Granada)  to  confer  with  the 
persevering  projector.  At  first  all  negotiation  seemed  fruitless,  for 
these  high  dignitaries,  offended  at  the  conditions  attached  to  his  pro- 
posal, utterly  refused  acceding  to  terms  which  they  considered  pre 
sumptuous  and  arrogant  in  the  extreme.  Argument  was  in  vain. 
He  would  yield  absolutely  nothing.  Seven  years  had  been  wasted 
at  the  Spanish  court,  and  he  was  now  far  advanced  in  life;  yet  this 
indefiitigable  man,  on  learning  iueir  adverse  decision,  forthwith 
mounted  his  beast,  and  set  off^,  to  carry  his  scheme  and  his  services 
to  the  court  of  France. 

At  this  unfortunate  issue,  the  few  friends  of  science  and  enterprise 
were  overwhelmed  with  mortification.  They  hastened  to  the  queen, 
and  besought  her  that  no  unnecessary  scruples  should  transfer  to 
other  hands  a  project  no  momentous  to  the  interests  of  Spain  and 
the  extension  of  Christianity.  Moved  by  their  eloquence,  she  fully 
resolved  in  favour  of  the  scheme,  and  with  a  generous  and  queenly 
entliusinstn,  resolved  that,  if  needful,  the  very  jewels  of  her  crown 
should  bo  })ledgcd  to  procure  means  for  the  expedition.  An  express 
was  iintnediatcly  dispatched  after  Columbus,  and  soon  overtook  him 
on  the  road  to  France.  After  hesitating  a  moment,  reluctant  to 
trust  himself  again  to  the  mercies  of  the  court,  he  turned  the  head 
of  his  mule,  and  journeyed  back  to  Granada. 

The  interest  and  ambition  of  the  sovereigns  were  now  fully  excited, 
and  the  terms  demanded  by  the  adventurer  were  at  once  acceded  to. 
These  were,  indeed,  of  a  princely  and  magnificent  nature,  nnd^  iiaJ 


86 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


good  faith  been  observed  by  the  crown,  would  have  resulted  in  the 
foundation  of  family  honours  and  p.uthorities  greater  than  any  sub- 
ject ever  receivied  at  the  hands  of  a  so\  ereigu.  He  and  his  heirs  for 
ever  were  to  enjoy  the  title  of  "High  Admiral  of  the  Ocean  Sea" 
in  all  the  lands  and  seas  which  he  should  discover,  with  the  office 
of  viceroy  and  governor-general,  invested  with  almost  absolute 
authority ;.  and  for  the  due  support  of  these  high  dignities,  were 
to  receive  an  eighth  of  all  profits  accruing  from  the  anticipated  dis- 
coveries (April,  1492).  To  the  honour  of  Columbus,  it  must  be  said, 
that  with  him  these  splendid  offices  and  prospective  emoluments 
were  not,  in  themselves,  the  ultimate  reward  of  his  exertions;  but 
only  the  means  by  which  grander  and  more  worthy  schemes  (to  his 
view)  were  to  be  accomplished.  The  Grand  Khan,  with  the  immense 
regions  under  his  sway,  was  to  be  converted  to  Christianity — perhaps 
brought  under  allegiance  to  their  Most  Catholic  Majesties.  The  Iloly 
Sepulchre,  by  the  aid  of  the  expected  treasure,  was  to  bo  rescued 
froni  the  infidels,  and  the  Faith  was  to  triumph  throughout  the 
remotest  regions  of  the  earth. 

The  little  sea-port  of  Palos,  in  consequence  of  some  offijnce  to  the 
crown,  had  been  condemned  by  the  council  to  furnish,  when  re- 
quired, two  caravels,  or  small  undecked  vessels,  for  the  public  ser- 
vice. These  little  craft,  with  their  crews,  were  now,  by  a  royal 
order,  placed  at  the  disposition  of  Columbus,  The  mariners  of  that 
port  were  among  the  boldest  and  most  skilful  of  any  who  ventured 
into  the  dreaded  waters  of  the  Atlantic,  or  coasted  along  the  newly- 
explored  shores  of  Africa;  but  when  the  nature  of  the  proposed 
expedition  was  made  known,  a  general  thrill  of  horror  ran  through 
the  whole  community.  To  sail  into  an  unknown,  untraverscd  sea, 
with  no  certain  land  to  steer  to,  seemed,  even  to  the  boldest,  the 
enterprise  of  madness  and  a  mere  tempting  of  Providence.  Every 
frightful  contingency  which  ignorance  and  superstition  could  sug- 
gest, or  ancient  rumor  confirm,  was  eagerly  adduced  against  the  auda- 
cious project.  Neither  vessels  nor  mariners,  despite  the  j)eremptory 
orders  of  a  despotic  court,  could  be  procured,  and  the  enterj)rise 
seemed  at  a  stand,  when  the  wealth  and  influence  of  a  single  family 
came  successfully  to  its  aid. 

Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  one  of  the  ablest  navigators  of  the  place, 
and  his  brother  Vicente,  persuaded  by  the  arguments  of  Columbus, 
now  came  forward,  and  threw  all  their  weight  in  favour  of  the  under- 
taking.    They  furnished  at  least  one  vessel  from  their  private  means, 


THE   SPANIARDS   IN   AMERICA. 


87 


and  by  their  influence  and  authority  the  work  went  rapidly  forward. 
Every  encouragement  to  those  engaged  in  the  project,  even  to  an 
exemption  from  the  consequences  of  crime,  was  afforded  by  the  court, 
and  by  the  beginning  of  August,  1492,  three  small  vessels  were 
ready  for  sea.  Aboard  the  Santa  Maria,  the  largest  of  these  and  the 
only  one  completely  decked,  Columbus  hoisted  his  flag;  another,  the 
Pinta,  which  had  been  pressed  into  the  service,  was  commanded  by 
Alonzo  Pinzon ;  and  the  third,  a  little  caravel  called  the  Nina,  by 
his  brother  Vicente.  The  crews  amounted  to  an  hundred  and 
twenty  souls. 

Letters  were  prepared  by  the  sovereigns  for  delivery  to  the  Grand 
Khan,  on  whose  territories  it  was  suppo.sed  the  expedition  would 
first  light,  and  whose  conversion,  (an  object  of  pious,  but  unrequited 
zenl,  to  many  devout  sovereigns,)  it  was  now  confidently  expected, 
would  be  triumpho'  'tly  brought  about.  Columbus,  with  all  his  peo- 
ple, performed  the  solemn  rites  of  confession  and  communion,  amid 
the  lamentations  of  the  whole  community,  most  of  whom  had  rela- 
tions aboard,  and  regarded  them  as  sailing,  on  a  cruise  of  insanity, 
to  assured  destruction.  On  Friday,  the  3d  of  August,  1492,  at  eight 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  this  little  squadron  set  sail,  on  an  enterprise 
the  most  venturesome  and  momentous  ever  undertaken  by  man. 

By  the  9th  of  August,  Columbus  arrived  at  the  Canary  islands, 
where  he  remained  three  weeks  to  repair  and  to  take  in  supplies, 
and  whence,  oh  the  6th  of  September,  amid  the  tears  and  lamenta- 
tions of  his  crews,  he  again  set  forth  in  quest  of  an  undiscovered 
world.  lie  steered  due  westward,  charging  the  other  commanders 
to  keep  in  company  with  him,  and,  after  sailing  seven  hundred 
leagues,  to  lay  to  at  night,  lest  they  should  strike  on  the  coast  of 
India  or  Japan,  Besides  his  accurate  reckoning,  he  kept  for  inspec- 
tion of  the  crew  a  fictitious  record,  in  which  a  considerable  distance 
was  daily  subtracted  from  the  actual  progress,  lest  they  should  be- 
come disheartened  at  seeing  the  entire  tract  of  ocean  which  inter- 
vened V)etween  them  and  their  homes. 

After  sailing  two  hundred  leagues,  a  variation  of  the  needle  was 
observed,  and  excited  much  alarm  among  his  people;  but  a  plausible 
explanation  allayed  their  fears.  They  were  soon  in  the  trade-winds, 
and  for  many  days  sped  westward  with  a  smooth  and  steady  motion, 
which,  almost  imperceptibly,  bore  them  hundreds  of  leagues  directly 
on  their  course.  The  weather  was  delightfully  mild  and  refreshintr. 
Day  aflr-  day  passed  by,  and  no  land  met  the  gaze  of  the  eager  nnd 


83 


THE  rEOl'LE'8   BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY 


.inxioua  mariners.  They  began  to  fear  that,  in  these  unknown 
regions  of  the  ocean,  the  wind  might  always  blow  from  the  eastward, 
and  forbid  the  possibility  of  return.  Great  alarm  was  also  excited 
by  the  appearance  of  viist  meadows  of  floating  sea-weed,  through 
whose  thick  and  tangled  masses  the  ships  with  dilliculty  forced  their 
way.  Involved  iu  these  treacherous  nets  of  the  sea,  or  stranded  on 
submerged  rocks  beneath,  far  from  any  firm  land,  they  would  never, 
they  cried,  be  able  to  regain  their  homes. 

The  position  of  Columbus  was  now  critical  and  perilous  in  the 
extreme.  His  ignorant  followers,  regarding  him  as  a  maniac,  or  as 
one  whom  ambition  had  made  careless  of  life,  were  repeatedly  on 
the  verge  of  mutiny.  A  plan,  it  is  said,  was  formed  for  throwing 
hiin  into  the  sea,  and  alleging,  on  their  return,  that  he  had  fallen 
overboard  by  chance  while  surveying  the  heavens  and  the  altitudes 
of  the  stars.  Nothing  saved  him  but  the  calm  and  resolute  authority 
which  he  maintained,  cheering  the  timid  by  persuasive  argumcMita, 
inciting  the  sanguine  with  promises,  and  awing  the  refractory  with 
open  threats.  By  the  finst  of  October  he  had  sailed  seven  hundred 
leagues  west  of  the  Canaries,  though  his  crew  supposed  the  distance 
to  be  considerably  less. 

On  the  7th  he  altered  his  course,  and  steered  for  three  days  south- 
west. No  land  appeared,  and  the  crews,  in  a  mutinous  manner, 
clamored  for  return.  It  has  been  told,  and  often  repeated,  that,  to 
appease  their  impatience,  he  promised,  if  no  land  appeared  in  three 
days,  to  turn  his  prows  to  the  eastward;  but  this  story  aj^pears  to 
have  been  reported  without  sufficient  ground.  On  the  contrary, 
finding  his  persuasions  ineffectual,  he  told  them  sternly  that  he  had 
been  sent  to  seek  the  Indies,  and,  till  they  were  found,  nothing  should 
induce  him  to  retrace  his  course.  Overawed  by  his  firmness  and 
digniiy,  they  yielded  .a  sullen  submission.  On  the  evening  of  the 
llth,  the  course  Wi\s  again  altered  to  the  westward. 

Occasional  specimens  of  fnsh  vegetation,  and  a  staff  artificially 
carved,  had  been  iately  pickea  up,  and  added  greatly  to  the  encour- 
agement of  their  hopes.  Every  eye  was  now  strairied  with  eager 
expectation,  and  Columbus  passed  the  night  on  the  high  cabin  of 
his  vessel,  anxious  to  bo  the  personal  discoverer  of  the  expected  land. 
About  ten  o'clock,  he  saw  a  faintly  gleaming  and  occasionally  hidden 
light  in  the  west,  which  he  regarded  as  the  certain  indication  of  an 
inhabited  land.  At  two  in  the  following  morning  (October  12th,) 
the  I'inta,  which  was  ahead  of  the  rest,  fired  a  gun,  the  signal  of 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


89 


discovery,  and  all  lay  to,  awaiting  with  intense  expectation  the 
approach  of  morning. 

As  the  day  slowly  dawned,  a  green  and  beautiful  island  was  seen 
stretching  before  them.  Numbers  of  people,  quite  naked,  were  run- 
ning on  the  beach,  filled  with  amazement  at  the  strange  spectacle 
which  the  night  had  conjured  up  on  their  shores.  The  admiral,  in 
full  dress,  bearing  the  royal  standard,  and  gallantly  attended,  entered 
his  boat,  and  rowed  to  shore.  Kissing  the  earth,  with  tears  of  joy, 
he  returned  thanks  to  God.  His  people  followed  the  example,  and 
all,  overwhelmed  with  joy,  thronged  around  him,  with  embraces, 
kissing  his  hands,  and,  in  the  intoxication  of  the  moment,  almost 
adoring  him.  He  proceeded  to  ta.''  a  solemn  and  ceremonious  pos- 
session of  the  island,  in  the  name  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  calling 
it  San  Salvador.  Its  native  name  was  Guanahani,  and  it  is  one  of 
that  long  chain  of  Bahamas  extending  from  Florida  to  Hayti. 

The  natives,  who  at  first,  terrified  by  the  armour  and  gorgeous 
array  of  the  strangers,  had  fled  into  the  woods,  now  ventured  forth, 
and  approached  the  Spaniards,  with  many  prostrations  and  signs  of 
adoration.  They  suppo.sed  that  these  wof^derful  beings  had  floated 
from  some  celestial  region,  and  gazed,  with  eager  curiosity,  on  their 
beards,  their  raiment,  and  the  whiteness  of  their  complexions.  The 
islanders  themselves  were  of  a  copper  hue,  nearly  naked,  and  orna- 
mented with  fantastic  paintings.  Supposing  himself  near  the  eastern 
shore  of  Asia,  Columbus  gave  these  people  the  name  of  Indians — a 
term  since  applied  to  all  the  native  races  of  the  western  hemisphere. 
Their  disposition  was  singularly  amiable  and  affectionate. 

The  admiral  gave  them  little  presents,  such  as  coloured  beads  and 
hawk's-bells,  the  tinkling  sound  of  which  tickled  their  ears  surpris- 
ingly, and  which  they  received  with  rapture  as  gifts  from  the  celes- 
tial land.  They  cried  to  each  other,  he  says,  "with  loud  voices, 
'  Come  and  see  the  men  tvho  have  come  from  heaven.  Bring  them  victuals 
and  arink.^  There  came  many  of  both  sexes,  every  one  bringing 
something,  giving  thanks  to  God,  prostrating  themselves  on  the  earth 
and  lifting  up  their  hands  to  heaven."  Great  numbers  came  off  in 
their  canoes  to  the  vessels,  bringing  tame  parrots  and  balls  of  cotton 
yarn  as  oflerings  to  tlie  wonderful  visitors. 

Strong  interest  was  excited  among  the  Spaniards  by  the  sight  of 
small  omaineiiis  of  gold,  which  the  natives  wore  in  their  noses,  and 
whicl)  they  averred,  by  signs,  was  procured  from  the  south-west. 
Columbus  understood  them  as  describing,  in  this  vague  species  of 


40 


THE  PEOPLES  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


communication,  a  great  prince,  who  was  served  on  vessels  of  that 
nrecious  substance;  and  his  ardent  imagination  at  once  inferred  that 
he  must  be  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Cipango,  and  of  its  gorgeous 
potentate,  described  by  Marco  Polo. 


DISCOVERY  OP  OTHER   BAHAMA  ISLANDS.  —  CONTINUED  EXPECTA- 
TIONS OFTINDINO  ASIA.  —  DISCOVERY  OP  CUBA.  —  DISCOV- 
ERY  OP   HAYTI,  OR   HISP,.  NIOLA.  —  ClfARACTER    OP    THE 

INHABITANTS. THE  CACIQUE   OUACANAOARI. THE 

SANTA    MARIA    WRECKED. LA    NAVIDAD    FORTI- 
FIED.—  COLUMBUS  SAILS  FOR  SPAIN.  —  FURTHER 
ADVENTURES     WITH     THE     NATIVES. 


On  the  evening  of  the  14th  of  October,  the  admiral  got  under 
way,  and  left  San  Salvador,  steering  atnid  green  and  beautiful 
islands,  which  appe.ircd  innumerable.  lie  at  once  concluded  that  he 
was  in  that  great  archipelago,  reported  by  his  favourite  author  as 
consisting  of  seven  thousand  four  hundred  and  rift3'-eight  spice-bearing 
islands,  and  lying  off  the  eastern  cojist  of  Asia.  On  the  16th  he  landed 
on,  and  took  po.«ses.sion  of  another  island,  which  he  devoutly  named 
"Santa  >faria  de  la  Concepcion,"  and  where  he  found  the  natives 
friendly  and  confiding  as  before.  At  the  island  of  Exuma,  where 
he  next  went  on  .shore,  the  inhabitants,  as  usual,  thronged  around 
him  with  their  little  offerings.  The  disposition  of  all  these  islanders 
appears  to  have  been  eminently  simple,  amiable  and  unsuspicious. 
"I  am  of  opinion,"  says  Columbus,  in  his  journal,  "that  they  would 
very  readily  become  Chri.stians,  a.s  they  appear  to  have  no  religion." 

In  Exumeta,  where,  in  search  of  his  Japanese  potentate,  the  admi- 
ral next  touched,  his  soul,  ever  keenly  sensitive  to  the  beauties  of 
nature,  was  filled  with  rapture  at  the  loveliness  of  the  scenery  and 
the  climate.  In  his  communication  to  the  sovereigns,  he  sjiys,  "It 
seems  us  if  one  would  never  desire  to  depart  from  hence.  I  know 
not  \\  here  first  to  go,  nor  are  my  eyes  ever  weary  of  gazing  on  the 
beautiful  verdure.  «  «  »  Ilere  are  large  lakes,  and  the 
groves  about  them  arc  marvellous,  and  here  and  in  all  the  island 


THE   SPANIARDS  IN   AMERICA. 


41 


every  thing  ia  green,  and  the  herbage  as  in  April  in  Andahisia.  The 
singing  of  the  birds  ia  such,  that  it  seems  as  if  one  would  never 
desire  to  depart  hence.  There  are  flocks  of  parrots  which  obscure 
the  sun,  and  other  birds,  large  and  small,  ot  so  many  kinds  and  so 
diirorent  from  ours,  that  it  is  wonderful ;  and  besides,  there  are  trees 
of  a  thousand  species,  each  having  its  particular  fruit,  and  all  of 
marvellous  flavor,  so  that  I  am  in  the  greatest  trouble  in  the  world 
not  to  know  tiiDm,  for  T  am  very  certain  that  they  are  each  of  great 
value.  *  *  *  As  I  arrived  at  this  Cape,  there  came 
off  a  fragrance  so  good  and  soft  of  the  flowers  or  trees  of  the  land, 
that  it  was  the  sweetest  thing  in  the  world." 

The  Indians  here  told  him,  that  in  a  great  island  named  Cuba,  to 
the  southward,  much  gold  abounded,  and  he  understood  them  as 
describing  large  ships  which  came  there  to  trade  for  spices  and  the 
precious  metals.  His  sanguine  imagination  at  once  sprang  to  the 
exultant  conclusion,  that  this  was  the  desired  Cipango;  that  the 
ships  in  question  were  those  of  the  Grand  Khan;  and  that  the  ex- 
pected fruit  of  hia  expedition  lay  ripe  before  him.  Forthwith  he  got 
under  way  (October  24th),  resolved  first  to  visit  the  island,  and  then 
to  cross  to  tRe  mainland,  and  deliver  his  letters  to  the  Khan. 

Three  days  he  sailed  south-west,  and  on  the  fourth,  beheld  the 
high  and  mountainous  shores  of  Cuba  stretching  before  him.  The 
squadron  anchored  in  a  beautiful  river,  and  the  commander  in  his 
boat  explored  the  country,  delighted  with  its  beauty.  The  most 
graceful  of  palms,  differing  from  those  of  the  Old  World,  every 
where  met  the  eye ;  and  he  fancied  that  amid  the  varied  perfumes  of 
tropical  vegetation,  he  coulu  distinguish  the  flavour  of  oriental  spices. 

Coasting  westward,  the  voyagers  fell  in  with  several  villages,  in 
which  were  found  implements  evincing  considerable  art  and  inge- 
nuity. By  another  strange  mistake,  the  result  of  imperfect  com- 
munication with  the  natives,  Columbus  now  concluded  that  he  was 
on  the  mainland  of  India,  and,  by  his  interpreters,  endeavoured  to 
reassure  the  alarmed  villagers,  and  to  convince  them  that  he  had  no 
connection  with  the  Khan,  whom  he  supposed  the  object  of  their 
especial  terror.  Encouraged  by  the  friendly  message,  though  part  of 
it  only  was  intelligible,  they  ventured,  in  great  numbers,  to  the  ships. 

The  admiral,  supposing  that  the  capital  of  Tartary,  the  seat  of  the 
Great  Khan,  could  lie  at  no  great  distance  in  the  interior,  dispatched 
messenjrers  in  quest  of  it — among  them  a  converted  Jew,  whom  he 
had  taken  out  expressly  to  further  communication  with  that  poten- 


42 


TIIK  PEOPLE'S   L  'OK  OF  HISTORY. 


V' 


Uitc,  mid  who  was  equipped  with  a  knowledge  of  Hebrew,  Clmldaic, 
and  Arubie.  Penetrating  the  country  for  some  distance,  this  einbiuisy 
came  upon  a  village  of  a  thousand  inhabitants,  from  wliom  they 
received  great  reverence  and  hospitality,  but  on  whom  the  oriental 
learning  of  the  interpreter  was  quite  thrown  away.  These  people 
smoked  a  fragrant  herb,  j)rcpared  in  rolls,  which  they  called  Taba- 
cos — a  name  since  imiversally  applied  to  the  plant  itself.  Much  cot- 
ton was  cultivated  by  them,  and  manufactured  into  the  simple  articles 
which  a  tropical  climate  requires. 

In  the  south-east,  Columbus  was  now  informed,  was  a  land  called 
Rabeque,  rich  in  gold,  which  the  people  there  hammered  into  bars. 
From  this,  and  from  the  name  Quisqueya,  which  they  occasionally 
used,  he  concluded  at  once  that  the  latter  could  be  no  other  than 
Quisai,  the  celestial  city  of  the  Khan,  described,  with  such  lavish 
ornament,  by  the  enthusiastic  Polo.  Accordingly,  turning  from  a 
course  which  would  .soon  have  taken  him  to  the  mainland  of  Amer- 
ica, Columbus,  on  the  12th  of  October,  retraced  his  way,  sailing  in 
quest  of  the  ever-fleeting  Land  of  Promise.  During  this  voyage, 
rendered  tedious  by  baffling  winds,  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  whose 
vossel,  the  Pintii,  was  the  fleetest  of  the  squadron,  deserted  him,  and 
was  soon  lost  to  sight.  The  admiral  slowly  worked  his  way  cast- 
ward  along  the  shore,  making  fresh  surveys,  and  fallinr;  in  with  new 
tribes  of  the  natives.  Their  canoes,  hollowed  from  the  Ceyba-trce, 
were  of  gigantic  size — some  of  them,  he  says,  being  capable  of  accom- 
modating an  hundred  and  fifly  persons.  It  was  not  until  the  5th  of 
December,  that  the  voyagers,  having  rounded  the  eastern  extremity 
of  Cuba,  beheld  a  new  land,  high  and  mountainous,  rising  in  the 
south-east. 

It  was  the  beautiful  and  unfortunate  island  of  Hayti,  on  which 
Columbus,  in  honour  of  his  adopted  country,  bestowed  the  name  of 
Ilisjtaniola,  but  which  hius  since  resumed  its  native  appellation.  On 
landing,  a  party  was  di8j)atched  into  the  interior,  and  found  a  large 
villago.  the  inhabitants  of  which  fled  at  their  approach.  Encouraged 
by  the  as.suiance3  of  an  interpreter,  they  at  length  ventured  back, 
to  the  number  of  two  thousand,  and  with  gestures  of  the  deepest 
reverence  and  .submi.s.sion,  received  the  mysterious  strangers.  Every 
tribute  of  simple  ho.'^pitality  was  aflbrded  them,  and  the  Indians 
brought,  asnong  other  oflering.o,  groat  numbers  of  tame  parrot."*,  as 
presents  for  their  guests.  Some  of  lliese  birds  had  yellow  rings  on 
iheir  neck?,  a  peculiarity  which  Pliny  had  remarked  of  the  parrots 


THE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMEBICA. 


48 


of  India,  nrnl  which  confirmed  the  sanguine  conviction  of  Columbus 
that  he  had  arrived  on  some  unknown  shore  of  the  Orient.  The 
opinion  was  not  confined  to  him.  "The  popiniays  and  many  other 
things,"  iiftorwards  writes  the  learned  Peter  Martyr,  "doe  declare 
that  these  Hands  mvour  somewhat  of  India,  eyther  being  near  vnto 
it,  or  else  of  the  same  nature." 

The  voyagers  were  enchanted  at  the  beauty  of  the  island,  the 
delicious  mildness  of  the  climate,  and  the  gentle  manners  of  the 
kindly  inhabitants.     Seldom  has  the  savage  life  been  found  in  a 
form  more  happy,  innocent,  and  alluring,  than  that  depicted  by  the 
early  voyagers  to  these  fortunate  shores.     The  continual  struggle  for 
shelter,  warmth,  and  food,  which  in  general  forms  the  misery  of  an 
uncivilized  people,  was  here  almost  eniirely  unknown.     The  mild- 
ness of  the  air  and  the  exuberant  fertility  of  the  earth  freed  them 
from  the  first  evils  of  barbarism,  and  their  mild  and  gentle  temper- 
ament of  character  allayed  the  usual  ferocity  of  savage  enmity. 
War  was  unfrequent  and  not  sanguinary,  and  in  general  the  various 
tribes  mingled  together  throughout  the  islands  in  perfect  confidence 
and  fiicndliness.     Columbus  is  warm  in  their  praise.     "They  are  a 
very  loving  race,"  he  informs  tlic  sovereigns,  "and  without  covetou*^- 
noss;  they  arc  adapted  to  any  use,  and  I  declare  to  your  Highnesses 
that  there  is  not  a  better  country  nor  a  better  people  in  the  world  than 
these.     They  love  their  neighbours  as  thoy  do  themselves,  and  their 
language  is  the  smoothest  and  sweetest  in  the  world,  being  always 
uttered  with  smiles.      They  all,  both  men  and  women,  go  totally 
naked ;  but  your  Highnesses  may  be  assured  that  they  pos.soss  many 
commendable  customs;  their  king  is  served  ndth  great  reverence, 
and  every  thing  is  pra>.tised  with  such  decency  that  it  is  highly  pleas- 
ing to  witness  it."     "They  display,"  he  says,  elsewhere,  "a  frankness 
and  liberality  in  their  demeanour,  which  no  one  would  believe  with- 
out witnessing  it.    No  request  of  any  thing  froi>^  ihem  is  ever  refused, 
but  they  rather  invite  acceptance  of  what  they  possess,  and  manifest 
such  a  generosity,  they  would  give  away  their  own  hearts."     He  set 
up  crosses  fur  their  edification,  and,  from  the  readiness  with  which  they 
imitated  the  Spaniard  J  in  making  that  holy  sign,  inferred,  rather  pre- 
maturely, that  they  were  ripe  and  ready  for  conversion.     They  will- 
ingly gave  their  gucs's  wh.'it  gold  they  had,  jjnd  still  repeated  the  allui- 
ing  accounts  of  islands,  richer  in  the  coveted  ore,  lying  still  beyond. 

A  cacique  or  native  chief  of  high  rank,  named  Guocanagari,  had 
dispatched  an  embassy  of  welcome  to  the  strangers,  and  had  enter- 


u 


THE  PEOPLE  8   BOOK   OF   HIRTORY. 


faincil  at  his  town,  with  grcnt  kiiidiiosfl  nnd  hospitnlity,  tlio  mcs. 
riengcrs  sent  in  return.  But  while  sailing  to  the  residence  of  this 
friendly  chief,  a  great  niisfortiinc  befell  the  admiral,  in  the  loss  of  his 
fillip,  which,  owing  to  the  earelessnesH  of  the  mariners,  ran  on  a  shoal 
in  the  night,  and  by  the  force  of  the  sea  and  current,  was  soon  reduced 
to  a  wreck.  The  crews  of  both  vessels  were  now  crowded  into  the 
little  caravel  Nina,  the  only  one  remaining  under  his  command. 

The  worthy  cacique,  with  his  people,  did  all  ho  could  to  alleviate 
the  misfortune.  In  their  light  canoes,  the  Indians  unladed  the  sluit- 
tered  vessel,  carrying  its  contents  on  shore,  and  religiously  guarding 
them,  even  to  the  smallest  article,  though  in  their  eyes  of  inestimable 
value,  for  the  use  of  the  owners.  Guacanagari  himself,  shedding 
tf-ars  of  .sympathy,  went  on  board,  comforting  the  admiral  for  his  lo.ss, 
and  generously  ofTi-ring  all  that  he  pos.sesRod.  His  ])('oj)le  brought 
in  considerable  gold,  which  they  readily  exchanged  for  trifles;  and 
the  chief,  observing  the  comforting  efTect  of  this  circumstance  on  the 
minds  of  his  guests,  aasured  them  that  in  the  mountains  abundance 
of  that  metal  was  to  be  found,  at  a  place  which  he  called  Cibao,  and 
Avliich  Columbus,  a.s  a  matter  of  course,  concluded  could  lie  no  other 
than  the  long-sought  Cipango. 

So  ehnrtned  were  the  crews  with  the  gentleness  and  kindness  of 
their  entertainers,  that  a  number  now  V>esought  of  the  ailmiral  per- 
mission to  remain  on  the  island,  rather  than  voyage  to  Kurope  in  the 
crowded  earavel.  This  scheme  was  approved,  and  all  hands,  with 
the  assistance  of  the  natives,  set  eagerly  to  work  at  breaking  up  tho 
wrecked  vessel,  and  constructing  a  fortress  of  its  materials.  Guns 
were  mounted  for  its  defence,  and  the  admiral  bestowed  on  it  tho 
pious  title  of  La  Navidad  or  "The  Nativity."  Thirty-nine  volun- 
teers, under  command  of  Diego  de  Arana,  composed  the  garrison, 
and  Columbus  gave  them  strict  directions  for  their  conduct,  espe- 
cially enforcing  the  necessity  of  just  and  conciliatory  treatment  of 
the  natives.  The  good  cacique  promised  li!  -  assistance  and  protc  ijon, 
and  with  tears  of  regret  took  leave  of  his  departing  guests.  Tho 
little  caravel  Nina,  freighted  with  the  momfiitnus  tidings  of  the  dis- 
covery of  a  new  world,  on  the  4th  of  January,  1493,  set  sail  for  the 
shores  of  the  old. 

Two  davs  afterwards,  while  slowlv  coasting  along  against  baffling 
winds,  to  the  suri)rise  of  Columbus,  he  saw  the  Pinta  coming  l)efor« 
:m  easterly  wind.  The  vessels  joined  eomf>any,  and  the  adnnral 
lliought  best  to  accept  the  excuses  of  Pinzon,  who  averr»vl  tlint  lu-ri 


TIIKHl>ANIAltD8   IN    AMERICA. 


45 


(It'iit  »,lono  had  prevented  his  rejoininj»  the  squadron.  Rut,  in  truth, 
lie  had  sailed  in  (^iifHt  of  lui  i.shind,  which  he  HUppoHod  to  abound  in 
gold;  and  had  lately  been  engaged  in  collecting  that  inotal  at  Iluyti 
and  in  kichiapping  the  Indians.  These,  however,  the  admiral  com- 
pelled hinj  to  restore  to  their  homos.  In  his  own  vessel,  he  carried 
six  of  the  Indians,  wliom  he  had  induced  to  accompany  him,  to 
instruct  ns  interpreters,  as  well  as  for  presentation  at  the  court  of 
Spain,  as  specimens  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  newly'discovered  land. 
Proceeding  along  the  shore,  the  returning  voyagers  anchored  in 
the  gulf  of  Samaria,  and  wore  presently  engaged  in  combat  with  the 
Ciguayans — a  bold  and  warlike  race  of  mountaineers,  whoso  arrows 
and  heavy  swords  of  palm-wood  indeed  proved  of  no  avail  against 
the  steel  and  flrc-arms  of  the  Spaniards.  They  were  put  to  flight 
and  two  of  them  were  wounded — "and  thus  were  spilt  the  first  drops 
of  that  vast  ocean  of  blood,  which  for  three  centuries  has  been  poured 
out  by  the  unhappy  aborigines  of  all  America,  as  a  libation  to  the 
cruelty  and  avarice  of  the  European  races."  Despite  this  untoward 
commencement  of  their  acquaintance,  peace  and  friendliness  were 
ppeedily  restored  between  the  combatants;  and  the  Indian  chief, 
having  visited  the  ship,  pleased  with  his  entertainment,  presented 
to  Columbus  his  coronet  of  gold — a  token  of  royal  generosity,  with 
which  Guocanagori  bad  already  complimented  his  visitor. 


-7 


^g  THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  HISTORY. 

CHAPTEH    Iy. 

THE   TOTAOE  TO  SPAIN.  —  PERIL  PROM   TEMPESTS. — REFLEC- 
TIONS  OP  COLUMBUS. — PERFIDIOUS   CONDUCT  OF   A  PORTU- 
GUESE.—  COLUMBUS   ARRIVIS   AT   LISBON. — MORTIFICA- 

.     TION    OP    KING     JOHN.  —  THE    ARRIVAL    AT    PALOS. 

DEATH  OP   PINZON. — SPLENDID   RECEPTION   OF  THE 
ADMIRAL    AT    COURT,  —  HONORS    CONFERRED     ON 
HIM.  —  HIS  SECOND  VOYAGE.  —  GREAT  EXCITE- 
MENT.—  DISCOVERY    OF    DOMINICA,    GUADA- 
LOUPE,  PORTO  RICO,   ETC.  —  ADVENTURES 
WITH  THE  CANNIBALS. 

On  the  16th  of  January  the  vessels  again  set  sail,  but,  until  the 
commencement  of  the  following  month,  were  delayed  by  adverse 
winds.  They  then,  for  a  time,  made  good  headway,  but  on  the  14th 
of  February,  in  a  tremendous  storm,  the  Pinta  was  lost  sight  of,  and 
all  the  nautical  skill  of  Columbus,  equal  to  that  of  any  man  of  his 
day,  was  required  to  keep  his  little  open  craft  alive  in  the  tempestuous 
seas  of  the  Atlantic.  Many  pious  vows  and  penances  were  under- 
taken— one  being  that,  at  the  first  land  they  touched,  the  admiral 
and  all  the  comj>any,  barefooted  and  in  their  .shirts,  should  go  to  offer 
up  prayens  to  the  Holy  Virgin.  That  the  tidings  of  his  grand  dis- 
covery might  by  chance  survive,  if  the  ves.sel  should  founder, 
Cohiiiibu.s  now  wrote  briefly  two  accounts  of  his  voyage,  one  of 
which,  iiiibeildcd  in  wax,  he  placed  in  a  barrel  and  flung  overboard 
— the  other,  secured  in  like  manner,  he  placed  on  the  .stern,  that  it 
might  float  olT,  when  the  vessel  should  be  inguljthed  by  the  waves. 

His  natural  grief  at  the  prospect  of  such  an  oKseure  and  dreary 
enil  to  his  noble  achievements  and  still  grander  anticipations,  was 
heightened  by  the  lamentations  of  his  crew,  and  the  remembrance, 
as  lie  simply  states,  of  the  threats  and  menaces  by  which  he  had 
compelled  them  to  complete  the  voyage.  "I  could  have  supported 
this  evil  fortune,"  he  piously  writes  to  his  patron.s,  "with  less  grief, 
had  my  person  al<  c  been  in  jeopardy,  since  I  am  a  debtor  for  my 
liff  to  the  Siipreni"'  Creator,  and  have  at  other  times  bc<'n  within  a 
strti  of  death.  But  it  was  a  cause  of  iiifinitr  sorrow  and  trouble  to 
tliink  that,  afler  having  been  illiuiiinatcd  from  on  high  with  faith 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN   AMERICA. 


47 


and  certainty  to  undertake  this  enterprise;  after  having  victoriously 
achieved  it,  and  when  on  the  point  of  convincing  my  opponents,  and 
securing  to  your  highnesses  great  glory  and  vast  increase  of  domin- 
ion, it  should  please  the  divine  majesty  to  defeat  all  by  my  death. 
*  *  *  *  And  although,  on  the  one  hand,  I  was  com- 
forted by  a  faith  that  the  Deity  would  not  permit  a  work  of  such 
great  exaltation  to  his  church,  wrought  through  so  many  troubles 
and  contradictions,  to  remain  imperfect;  yet,  on  the  other  hand,  I 
reflected  on  my  sins,  for  which  he  might  intend  as  a  punishment  that 
I  should  be  deprived  of  the  glory  which  would  redound  to  me  in 
this  world." 

On  the  15th,  during  the  continuance  of  the  gale,  the  tempest-tossed 
caravel  finally  made  land ;  and,  three  days  afterwards,  was  enabled 
to  anchor  under  the  lee  of  St.  Mary's,  the  most  southern  of  the 
Azore  islands.  Great  curiosity  was  excited  by  her  arrival,  and  the 
Portuguese  governor  dispatched  presents  and  courteous  messages  to 
the  admiral,  though  with  treacherous  and  malignant  intent.  This 
presently  appeared ;  for  half  the  crew,  while  performing  their  pious 
vow  in  a  chapel  of  the  virgin,  were  set  upon  by  a  rabble  route  of 
the  islanders,  horse  and  foot,  headed  by  that  functionary  himself, 
who,  however,  was  grievously  disappointed  at  not  getting  possession 
of  the  person  or  Colunft)us.  It  was  not  until  the  23d  that  the  latter 
oould  regain  his  men ;  and  on  the  following  day,  wounded  at  this 
ungenerous  reception  at  the  hands  of  civilized  men,  (so  different  from 
tliat  of  his  kindly  entertainers  the  savage  Ilaytians,)  he  again  got 
under  way,  and  steered  for  Spain. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1493,  the  little  craft,  preserved  amid  so  many 
perils,  entered  the  mouth  !'  the  Tagus.  The  greatest  curiosity  and 
excitement  imnicdiatcly  prevailed.  The  river  was  covered  with 
boats;  and  Khig  John,  aware  of  the  magnitude  of  the  achievement, 
received  the  discoverer  with  high  honours,  though  secretly  devoured 
with  cliagrin  at  the  remembrance  of  the  perfidy  by  which  he  had 
forfeited  his  own  claim  to  the  splendid  prize  now  rescued  from 
the  depth  of  the  ocean.  Rejecting  a  proposal  for  the  assassination 
of  Columbus,  suggested  b}'  his  more  unprincipled  advisers,  he  re- 
solved forthwith  to  dispatch  a  powerful  force  to  anticipate  Spain  in 
the  seizure  of  the  tempting  lands  just  brought  to  light. 

On  the  15th,  Columbus  once  more  east  anchor  in  the  port  of 
Palos,  whence  a  little  more  than  seven  months  before  he  had  taken 
hi.-'  departure  on  this  most  eventful  of  voyages.     The  whole  com- 


48 


TUB  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


Hii 


inunity  was  entranced  with  joy;  the  bells  were  rung,  and  a  solemn 
procession  was  made  to  the  church.  In  the  midst  of  these  rejoicings, 
the  Pinta  reentered  the  harbour.  Pinzon,  who  had  touched  at  Bay- 
onne,  and  thence,  with  the  air  of  a  great  discoverer,  had  dispatched 
his  tidings  to  the  court,  was  filled  with  consternation  when  he  beheld 
the  vessel  of  his  commander,  which  he  had  supposed  swallowed  up 
in  the  ocean,  riding  safely  in  the  harbour.  He  kept  in  private,  and 
in  a  few  days  died  of  a  broken  heart,  his  end  being  hastened  by  a 
reproachful  letter  which  he  received  from  the  sovereigns.  Such  was 
the  melancholy  fate  of  .\  man  whose  daring,  liberality,  and  enterprise 
so  materially  contributed  to  the  discovery  of  the  New  World,  but 
all  whose  high  qualities,  by  treachery  and  insubordination,  missed  of 
the  renown  to  which  they  would  otherwise  have  been  justly  entitled. 

The  court  of  Spain,  filled  with  exultation  at  the  magnificent  tid- 
ings, summoned  the  successful  adventurer  to  Barcelona ;  and,  having 
commenced  his  preparations  for  a  second  voyage,  he  journeyed 
thither  through  roads  beset  by  crowds  of  curious  and  adniriug 
gazers.  A  great  multitude,  headed  by  nobles  and  cavaliers,  went 
forth  from  the  city  to  meet  him ;  and  as  he  passed  in  triumphal  pro- 
cession through  the  streets,  all  gazed  with  intense  curiosity  on  the 
trophies  of  the  unknown  world — on  coronets  and  ornaments  of  gold, 
the  gift  of  Indian  kings — on  the  gay  birds  from  the  forests  of  the 
Antilles — on  the  tawny  natives  of  the  new  land — and  most  eagerly 
on  the  majestic  person  of  the  great  discoverer,  already  venerable 
with  years,  and  of  a  presence  and  demeanour  whose  natural  nobility 
seemed  adequate  to  the  magnitude  and  grandeur  of  his  achievement. 

The  sovereigns,  in  a  great  public  assembly,  rose  from  their  thrones 
to  receive  him — an  honour,  in  that  proud  and  punctilious  court, 
accorded  only  to  royal  visitors.  In  an  eloquent  and  touching  nar- 
rative, he  recounted  his  adventures,  and  all  present,  moved  to  tears 
by  the  extraordinary  occasion,  fell  on  their  knees  and  returned  thanks 
to  God,  while  a  thrilling  7'e  Deum,  chanted  by  the  royal  choir,  went 
up  to  Heaven. 

The  most  splendid  acknowledgment  of  his  services  was  now  made 
by  the  grateful  sovereigns  to  their  long-neglected  protege.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  high  honours  and  dignities  already  acquired  by  his  suc- 
cess, lie  was  a! 'owed  to  quarter  the  royal  arms  with  his  own,  and  to 
add  a  group  of  islands  surrounded  by  the  waves,  with  the  niagni- 
licont  legend: 


C  II  I!  I  S   I  ')  I    II  I.  li     I    II  I.   I    M 


T  II  r     n  I  6  i  o  V  r  li  r.  R     <    r     a  m  i.  r  i  c  a  . 

■  Ii\  \E*R  (iKNOA  AlWirr  11.T5.    l>IM(iVi:Rf;ii    IIIK  «  KST  tNIMKS.  (HTDllKC   12,  1192: 
U1W1IVKRKII  !<iilTM  AMKRIi  A.  AldIM    I    U'*     IMKP  MaV  '»\  l'^»> 


THE   SPANIAliDS   IN    AMKKIOA. 


49 


"POk  CASTILLA  Y  POR  LEON 
NUEVO  MUNDO  HALLO  COLON."* 

Throughout  Europe,  the  intelligence  of  his  wonderful  achievement 
was  received  with  the  highest  rapture  and  exultation — nor  cou.d  u 
spirit  like  his  have  desired  a  fitter  reward  than  in  the  generous  tears 
of  joy  and  enthusiasm  which  men  of  learning  and  eminence  are 
reported  to  have  shed  on  hearing  of  the  wonderful  result.  In  Eng- 
land, says  a  contemporary,  at  the  court  of  Henry  YIT.,  the  whole 
affair  was  commonly  considered  "a  thing  rather  divine  than  human." 
The  real  grandeur  and  imjportance  of  the  discovery,  indeed,  as  yet, 
were  not  even  conjectured,  and  all  this  exultation  appears  to  have 
been  founded  on  the  practical  demonstration  of  the  roundness  of  the 
earth,  and  the  fact  that  its  '•omplete  survey  and  connection  were 
within  the  compass  of  the  means  of  civilization. 

The  court  of  Spain  exhibited  unwonted  eagerness  and  activity  in 
the  task  of  securing  and  extending  its  new  possession.  The  pope, 
at  the  instance  of  his  faithful  allies,  the  Sovereigns,  issued  a  bull, 
confirming  to  them  full  possession  of  all  the  territories  which  they 
might  discover  any  where  beyond  a  hundred  leagues  westward  from 
the  Azores.  The  Portuguese,  by  a  previous  instrument,  were  already 
invested  with  ur.limited  right  of  discovery  and  conquest  to  the  east- 
ward ;  o,nd  too  persevering  a  search  in  the  allotted  directions,  in  due 
time,  brought  the  rival  nations  into  contact  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  globe.  John,  indeed,  at  this  very  time,  had  fitted  out  a  power- 
ful ariii!iment,  intended  to  anticipate  Spain  in  the  seizure  of  the  new 
Indies;  l)ut  negotiation  finally  appeared  his  better  policy,  and  after 
an  infinity  of  intrigue  and  attempted  circumvention,  the  matter  was 
settled  for  a  time  by  removing  the  line  of  partition  to  three  hundred 
and  seventy  leagues  west  of  the  Azores. 

Columbus,  aided  by  a  royal  commission,  was  now  intently  fengaged 
in  fitting  out  a  second  expedition,  on  a  scale  commensurate  with  the 
importance  of  the  discoveries  already  madC;  and  the  sanguine  antici- 
pation of  achievements  still  more  brilliant  ai\d  successful.  For  this 
purposs,  he  was  invested  with  almost  unlimited  control  over  the  per- 
sons and  property  of  the  subjects.  But  this  arbitrary  enforcement, 
which  had  well-nigh  j)roved  fruitless,  when  the  first  grand  enterprise 
depended  on  its  efficiency,  was  now  needless  for  the  furtherance  ol 

♦  "  For  Cimtilo  und  for  Ixjon 

Columbus  found  a  New  World." 
Vol.  TIL— 4 


50 


THE  PEOl'LE'S  BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


an  midcrtaking  already  so  prosperously  begun.  The  o'  ly  dilTiculty 
Avas  in  seleeting  from  the  host  of  ardent  volunteers,  vs  ho,  moved 
by  cupidity  for  wealth,  ambition  for  fame,  or  zeal  for  conversion, 
thronged  eagerly  to  join  their  fortunes  to  the  enterprise.  "Here- 
upon," says  Galvano,  "there  grewe  such  a  common  desire  of  trauaile 
among  the  Spanyards  that  they  were  ready  to  leape  into  the  sea  to 
Bwim,  if  it  had  beeti  possible,  to  those  new  found  parts." 

With  remarkable  promptitude,  seventeen  vessels  were  equipped, 
and  loaded  with  materials  for  the  foundation  of  a  colony.  Twelve 
pious  ecclesiastics  were  provided  for  the  conversion  of  the  natives — 
an  object  deeply  at  heart  with  the  benevolent  IsaVlla.  It  had  been 
intended  that  only  a  thousand  persons  should  embark  in  the  expe- 
dition; but  by  stealth,  importunity,  or  favour,  at  least  fifteen  hun- 
dred got  on  board.  The  '  lultitudes  of  disappt)intt'd  applicaius  who 
thronged  the  slu)res  and  watched  the  departing  sa'ls,  regarded  them 
as  the  most  fortunate  of  mortals.  On  the  25th  of  Septi-inber,  1493, 
with  all  his  honours  confirmed  and  augmented,  and  with  the  happi- 
est auspices  of  succes.s,  Columbus  set  sail,  with  favourable  breezes 
from  the  harbour  of  Cadiz.  The  commencement  of  this  voyage,  and 
the  busy  days  which  preceded  it,  were  undoubtedly  the  happiest  of 
his  life.  For  one  brief  interval,  the  brilliant  sunshine  of  prosperity 
shone  fairl}'  on  a  life  clouded,  almost  throughout  its  duration,  by  per- 
secution, misfortune,  or  neglect. 

At  ihe  Canary  islands,  with  a  provident  forethought,  which  added 
greatly  to  the  future  wealth  and  comforts  of  the  New  World,  the 
admiral  took  on  board  a  variety  of  live  stock,  and  a  quantity  of  the 
most  useful  plants  and  seeds;  and  then,  on  the  13th  of  October,  onco 
more  launched  forth  into  the  Atlantic,  now  by  his  genius  and  bold- 
ness for  ever  divested  of  its  ancient  imaginary  terrors.  The  wind 
was  proj)itious  and  the  fleet  sped  rapidly  westward — keeping  a  course, 
however,  rather  more  to  the  southward  than  in  the  former  voyage, 
with  a  view  to  effecting  fresh  discoveries  on  its  way.  On  Sunday, 
the  3d  of  November,  the  lofly  iwaks  of  Dominica  (so  named  in 
honour  of  its  discovery  on  the  Lord's  Dav.)  were  hailed  witli  shouts 
of  exultation.  With  a  gentle  breeze,  the  fleet  swept  onward  into 
that  splendid  archipelago,  whose  summer  islands  unite  every  beauty 
and  variety  of  tropical  and  mountainous  scenery.  One  of  the.se.  at 
which  the  admiral  touched,  is  still  called  Marigalante,  afler  the  name 
of  liis  ship. 

On  the  4th,  he  landed  at  Guadaloupe,  where  the  natives  fled  in  alarm 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN   AMERICA. 


51 


from  the  footsteps  of  the  white  men,  leaving  their  villages  deserted. 
In  their  huts,  which  were  neat  nnd  comfortable,  the  Spaniards  found 
various  ingenious  implements,  and  to  secure  the  good-will  of  the 
fugitives,  bound  hawk's-bells  and  other  trinkets  upon  the  children, 
which,  in  their  hasty  flight,  had  been  left  behind.  The  visitors, 
however,  ere  long,  were  horrified  at  discovering  numerous  human 
remains,  such  as  skulls  converted  into  urinking  vessels  and  other 
domestic  utensils.  "  Our  men,"  says  a  contemporary,  *'  found  in  their 
houses  al!  kinds  of  earthen  vessels,  not  much  vnlike  unto  ours. 
The3'  found  also  in  their  kytchens,  mans  flesn,  duckos  flesh,  &  goose 
flesh,  ill!  in  one  pot,  and  other  on  the  spits  ready  to  be  layd  to  the 
fire.  Entring  into  their  inner  lodginges,  they  found  faggottes  of 
the  bones  of  mens  armes  and  legges,  which  they  reserue  to  make 
heades  for  their  arrowes,  because  they  lack  iron,  the  other  bones 
they  cast  away  when  they  have  eaten  the  flesh.  They  found  like- 
wise the  head  of  a  yong  man  fostened  to  a  post,  and  yet  bleeding." 
These  people  were  the  Caribs,  a  fierce  race  of  cannibals,  of  whom 
the  Spaniards  had  heard  on  the  former  voyage,  and  from  whom  the 
islands  and  the  adjacent  sea  still  take  their  name.  The  accounts  of 
their  enormities  were  received  with  lively  interest  in  Europe,  as  con- 
firming the  reality  of  cannibalism,  which  by  many  had  been  sup- 
posed a  mere  figment  of  poetry,  engendered  in  the  lively  imaginations 
of  the  ancient  Greek  writers. 

At  this  island  tho  fleet  was  detained  for  several  davs,  awaiting  the 
return  of  nine  mariners,  who  had  straggled  into  the  woods,  ar.d  did 
not  regain  the  ships  until  half  starved.  Weighing  anchor  on  the 
10th,  the  admiral  stood  f^r  Ilispaniola,  discovering  numerous  island.s 
on  the  way.  At  Santa  Cruz,  some  of  his  people  became  engaged  in 
a  fight  with  a  party  of  Caribs,  who,  in  a  canoe,  defended  themselves 
with  the  utmost  desperation,  killing  one  of  their  assailants.  The 
chief  person  was  .in  Indian  queen,  of  extraordinary  courage  and 
fierceness,  who,  with  her  son,  ("a  young  man  strongly  made,,  of  a 
terrible  and  frowning  countenance,  and  a  Lion's  face,")  was  finally 
made  prisoner.  '*  When  they  were  brought  into  the  admirall's  .shipj^e," 
proceeds  the  old  narrative,  "they  did  no  more  put  off  their  fierce- 
nes  and  cruell  countenances  than  do  the  Lions  of  Lybia  when  they 
perceiue  themselucs  to  bee  bound  in  chayncs.  There  is  no  man  able 
to  behold  them,  but  he  shall  feele  his  bowells  grate  with  a  certayne 
horrour,  nature  hath  endued  ther*  with  so  terrible  menacing  and 
cruell  aspect" 


# 


52 


THE  PEOl'LE'S   BOOK  OF  UISTOBY. 


CHAPTEH   7. 


ARRIVAL  OF  THE  FLEET  AT  HAYTI.  —  THE  DESTRDCTION  07  LA 
NAVIDAD.  —  CITY   OF   ISABELLA    FOUNDED.  —  EXPEDITIONS 
TO  THE  INTERIOR.  —  SU  F  FERIN08  AN  D  DI8C0NT  KNT  OF  THE 
COLONISTS.  —  EXPEDITION  OF  COLUMBUS  TO  THE  WEST. 
—  DISCOVERY  OF  JAMAICA.  —  INTERCOURSE  WITH   THE  ', 

NATIVES. — TEDIOUS  COASTING  ALONG    lUBA. — SUP- 
POSED TO  BE  A  PORTION  OP  ASIA. —  EITRAORDIN-  . 
ARY    PROCFSS.  —  THE    RETURN    VOYAGE. 


Sti»jL  keeping  north-vest,  the  fleet  discovered  and  touched  at  the 
beautiful  island  of  Boriquen  or  Porto  Rico,  and  after  making  further 
discoveries,  by  the  22d  arrived  at  the  eastern  extremity  of  Ilayti. 
The  Indians  came  off  to  the  ships  with  their  accustomed  confidence 
and  friendliness;  but  terrible  misgivings  were  soon  awakened  by 
the  discovery  of  several  bodies  decaying  on  the  shore,  one  of  which, 
from  itij  beard,  was  evidently  that  of  a  Spaniard.  On  the  27th,  in 
the  evening,  the  voyagers  arrived  oil"  La  Navidad,  and  lired  cannon 
as  a  signal  to  iheir  friends  on  shore.  No  salute  was  given  in  reply, 
and  all  on  board  remained  in  a  state  of  grievous  susjx'nse,  until  the 
arrival  of  messengeriJ  from  Guacanagari,  during  the  night,  contirmcd 
their  worst  appreheusious. 

After  the  departure  of  Columbus,  it  would  appear,  the  turbulent 
and  mutinous  spirits,  whom  he  had  loft  behind,  soon  abandoned  all 
restraint,  quarrelled  with  each  other,  and  *  maltreated  the  Indians. 
Eleven  of  them,  athirsi  for  the  possession  of  tretisure,  had  set  out  for 
the  golden  region  of  Cibao,  a  region  ruled  by  the  fierce  Carib  Caonabo, 
who  had  obtained  the  sovereignty  of  that  province,  and  was  an  object 
of  termor  to  all  the  surrounding  chieftains.  Jealous  of  the  intrusion, 
be  had  massacred  the  adventurers,  and  then,  joining  his  forces  to 
those  of  a  neighbouring  cacique,  had  stealthily  rnurchcd  to  the  attack 
of  the  fortress.  The  garriaon,  surprised  in  the  dead  of  night,  aft«r  a 
vail  .  'itance,  were  slaughtered  to  a  man;  and  the  village  of  Gua- 
vho  faithfully  stood  by  his  guests,  was  burned  to  the  ground. 
<»8trous  tidings  were  confirmed  by  the  scene,  which  the 
■■^':'  revealed  to  the  eyes  of  the  Spaniards.  The  fortress 
lay  in  i  uins,  and  the  Indian  village  in  ashes.    Guacanagari  was  found 


C&'U.. 


lU 


THE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMERICA. 


58 


suffering  from  a  wound  received  in  the  contest,  and  shed  tears  over 
the  jnisfortunes  of  his  allies  and  his  people.  Several  of  the  latter 
were  wounded,  evidently  by  Indian  weapons. 

Despite  these  confirmatory  cii  ^umstanoes,  many  of  the  Spaniards 
doubted  the  truth  of  the  tale,  and  insisted  that  Guacanagari  himself 
had  shared  in  the  destruction  of  his  visitors.  Father  Boyl,  the  chief 
of  the  friars,  advised  his  immediate  execution.  But  Columbus, 
believing  him  innocent,  exchanged  presents  with  their  accustomed 
friendliness  and  invited  him  aboard  ship.  The  chieftain  and  his 
people  were  again  filled  with  amazement  at  the  new  and  marvellous 
productions  of  the  old  world,  or,  as  they  still  supposed,  of  the  distant 
realms  of  heaven;  and  gazed  with  especial  wonder  on  the  horses, 
now  for  the  first  time  beheld  by  Indian  eyes.  But  he  saw  that  to 
aany  he  was  an  object  of  suspicion  and  hostility,  and  by  refusing  to 
wear  the  cr'^ss,  he  increased  the  ill-will  of  the  more  fanatical.  Soon 
afterwards,  he  retreated  into  the  mountains,  taking  with  him  some 
Indian  women,  whom  the  Spaniards  had  captured  on  their  way,  and 
whom  he  succeeded  in  enticing  from  the  ships. 

Leaving  this  ill-omened  neighbourhood,  on  the  7th  of  December, 
the  governor  weighed  anchor,  and  proceeded  in  quest  of  a  more 
favourable  location  for  his  settlement.  About  ton  leagues  east  of 
the  lofty  promontory  which  he  named  ^lontc  Christ!,  adverse  winds 
comf  jlled  him  to  put  into  a  harbor.  Tlic  place  presented  great  nat- 
ural advantages,  as  well  for  building  as  fortification.  Two  rivers 
flowed  into  it,  and  the  golden  mountains  of  Cibao  lay  but  a  moderate 
distance  in  the  interior.  Here,  therefore,  he  determined  to  lay  the 
foundations  of  a  city,  and,  in  honour  of  his  magnanimous  patroness, 
to  name  it  Isabella.  All  bands,  accordingly,  were  speedily  busied  in 
the  work  of  disembarking  stores  and  materials  for  building;  streets 
jmd  squares  were  laid  out;  a  church,  a  public  magazine,  and  a  house 
for  the  governor,  were  constructed  of  stone;  and  numerous  wooden 
buildings,  for  the  shelter  of  the  settlers,  were  speedily  erected. 

But  the  change  of  climate  and  unaccustomed  toil  soon  wrought 
their  work  on  thr^.  frames  of  this  over-sanguine  multitude.  Columbus 
himself  was  prostrated  with  illness;  but  in  some  measure  to  satisfy 
the  disappointed  expectants  of  immediate  wealth,  resolved  to  des- 
patch an  expedition  to  the  interior,  to  survey  its  resources,  and  to 
lay  open  the  way  to  the  anticipated  region  of  treasure.  Alonzo  do* 
Ojeda,  a  young  cavalier  distinguished  for  daring  and  activity,  was 
put  in  command  of  a  small  force,  well  armed  and  resolute,  wiili 


WlUi 


'I 


64 


THE  PfiOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY, 


wliich,  early  in  January,  1494,  lie  set  forth  for  the  interior.  The 
task  of  exploration  proved  diflicult  from  the  forests  and  mountains 
through  which  their  course  lay;  but  they  were  received,  as  usual, 
with  much  kindness  at  the  Indian  villages,  and  were  elated  at  find- 
ing in  the  sands  of  the  mountain  torrents  glittering  particles,  of  the 
coveted  ore.  Ilaving  been  absent  for  a  numb'T  of  days,  they 
returned  with  encouraging  reports. 

R(*assured  by  these  favourable  tidings,  Columbus  now  di.<patclicd 
to  Spain  twelve  of  his  vessels,  with  specimens  of  the  gold  and  the 
natural  productions  of  the  island,  and  a  number  of  Caribs  whom  he 
had  captured  in  his  cruise  among  the  Cannibal  Islands.  These 
pagans,  he  requested,  might  be  instructed  in  Spani. !  md  Christianity, 
and  thus  become  useful  as  missionaries  and  interpreters  among  their 
anthropophagan  brethren.  Further  to  promote  the  work  of  conver- 
sion, he  proposed  to  establish  a  regular  trade  with  the  im  >thcr-country, 
by  which  live  stock  might  be  furnished  to  the  colony  in  exchange  for 
a  regular  supply  of  cannibals,  duly  to  be  caught  and  sent  home  for 
their  spiritual  good  and  the  merely  incidental  value  of  their  services 
as  slaves.  This  notable  scheme,  (by  which,  it  was  believed,  "a  vast 
number  of  souls  would  be  snatched  from  perdition  and  carried  as  it 
were  by  main  force  to  heaven,")  fell  through,  from  the  benevolent 
disapprobation  of  the  queen. 

Hardly  had  the  vessels  taken  their  departure,  when  the  impatient 
colonists,  dispirited  by  work  and  sickness,  and  disappointed  in  their 
golden  hopes,  began  to  exhibit  signs  of  mutiny  and  a  desire  to  aV)an- 
don  the  settlement.  A  scheme  for  seizing  the  ships  was  detected  liy 
the  vigilance  of  the  governor.  A  slanderous  memorial  against  him 
was  found  concealed  in  one  of  the  buoys.  The  chief  ringleader  was 
sent  home  to  Spain,  and  others  were  moderately  punished;  but 
enmities  and  resentments  were  awakened  against  the  admiral,  readily 
obnoxious  a.s  a  foreigner,  which  were  destined  greatly  to  thwart  and 
embarrass  his  future  undertakings.  On  recovering  from  his  illness, 
his  energetic  spirit  at  once  found  employment  in  the  task  of  explora- 
tion. Leaving  his  brother  Diego  in  command  of  the  town,  he  set 
forth,  on  the  12th  of  March,  with  four  hundred  men,  well  armed 
and  equipped,  for  the  interior.  Crossinj^  the  beautiful  Vega  Real, 
or  Koyal  Plain,  and  every  where  received  with  wondering  curiosity 
and  unbounded  hospitality  by  the  Indian.s,  the  expedition  finally 
entered  the  rtiggcd  passes  of  Cibao,  or  the  "  Region  of  Stones,"  through 
which  the  heavy  armed  soldiers  toiled  with  difficulty,  though  con- 


THE  SPANIARDS    IN    AMKRICA. 


Co 


soled  for  the  hardsliips  of  the  way  by  tlio  sight  of  golden  j)articlt's 
glistening  amid  the  sands  of  the  streams.  The  most  flattering 
accounts  were  given  by  the  natives  of  treasures  locked  up  still  dor]»or 
in  the  recesses  of  the  mountains — lumps  of  gold,  they  said,  were  to 
be  found  as  big  as  an  orange,  or  even  om  large  as  the  head  of  a  child. 

Having  marched  eighteen  leagues,  mostly  through  a  rugged  and 
difficult  country,  Columbus  halted  his  forces,  dispatching  a  small 
party  to  make  further  exploration,  and  employing  the  remainder  in 
the  erection  of  a  fortress.  Ilis  scouts  brought  back  favourable  reports 
of  the  wealth  of  the  country,  and  leaving  fifly-six  men,  under  com- 
mand of  Pedro  Margarite,  at  the  new  post,  Lt  took  his  way  to  Isa- 
bella, where  he  arrived  after  an  absence  of  seventeen  days.  Here, 
much  to  his  satisfaction,  ho  found  the  European  plants,  which  ho 
had  committed  to  the  earth,  flourishing  with  remaikable  exuberance. 
Wheat  came  to  perfecton  in  a  little  more  than  two  months  from  the 
sowing,  and  the  sugar  canes,  destined  in  these  islaids,  at  no  distant 
day,  to  supply  the  markets  of  half  the  world,  lad  thriven  most 
kindly  in  the  virgin  soil  and  tropical  climate  of  Hayti. 

But  the  influences  so  benign  and  propitious  to  vegetation,  were 
falling  with  deadly  and  withering  ctfect  on  the  fram(S  of  the  colo 
nists,  as  yet  unacclimated  to  tlie  dangerous  atmosphere  of  the  island. 
Fevers  and  other  tropical  maladies  prevailed;  and  that  malign  dis- 
order, the  terror  of  licentiousness,  contracted  from  the  natives,  filled 
the  hearts  of  the  Spaniards  with  a  novel  affright  and  dismay.  De- 
spite these  unfavourable  circumstances,  the  governor  pushed  on  his 
plans;  the  work  of  building  and  cultivation  went  forward;  but  by 
compelling  the  hidalgos  and  cavaliers  in  his  train  to  share  in  tho 
labour.s  of  the  infant  settlement,  he  awakened  enmities  which  exer- 
cised an  unfavourable  influence  on  his  interests  at  court.  Short 
allowance  became  necessary,  and  Father  Boyl,  with  his  ghostly  con- 
federates, was  aggrieved  and  disgusted  at  being  included  in  the  gen- 
eial  order  for  stinted  rations.  Many  of  the  unfortunate  colonists 
perished  from  diseases  incident  to  the  climate,  aggravated  by  unac- 
customed labour,  and  by  change  and  insufTiciency  of  diet. 

The  ill-conduct  of  the  garrison  of  the  inland  fortress  of  St.  Thomas 
soon  provoked  the  enmity  of  the  Indians,  and  tiditigs  came  that  tho 
fierce  Caonabo  was  preparing  another  attack  on  the  invaders  of  his 
country.  To  refresh  the  colonists  by  change  of  air,  as  well  as  to 
over-awe  and  conciliate  the  natives,  Columbus  now  prepared  a  second 
grand  expedition.     Ojeda,  with  four  hundred  men,  was  sent  to  the 


5« 


THE  rEOPLE'8  BOOK  OF  HIRTOnV. 


fortress,  with  directions  to  nwiiirio  the  command,  wliile  Mnrgarito, 
with  tho  army,  wiv?  t..  tnnko  frcHh  siirvtiys  of  tho  country,  visiting 
the  vorioua  caciques  for  tho  purpose  of  securing  their  good-will,  as 
well  as  displaying  the  power  of  the  Spaniards.  Caonabo  and  his 
brothers  were,  if  possible,  to  be  secured,  and  any  injuries  com- 
mitted by  the  Indians  were  to  be  summarily  punished;  bn*  strict 
injunctions  were  given  that  the  natives,  in  general,  should  be  ated 
in  the  rnildest  ai  most  conciliatory  mannor,  and  that  no  provisions 
should  bo  taken  from  them  without  a  proj)er  compensation.  But 
these  just  and  politic  instructions  were  little  heeded  by  tho  rude 
spirits  once  freed  irom  his  personal  control.  The  expedition,  on  the 
9th  of  April,  left  Isabella. 

Eager  to  pursue  his  more  congenial  vocation  of  maritime  discovery, 
Columbus  I  ')w  delegated  his  authority  as  governor  to  his  brother 
Diego,  with  a  council,  and  on  the  2-4th  of  April,  1494,  with  the  Nina 
and  two  other  small  caravels,  sot  forth  on  a  new  voyage  of  explora- 
tion. Steering  to  the  westward,  he  soon  fell  in  with  Cuba  and  cotwted 
along  its  southern  shore,  enjoying,  wherever  he  landed,  tho  most  kind 
and  hospitable  trcatnii'iit  from  the  native  inhabitants.  A  great  island, 
they  informed  him,  lying  to  tho  southward,  was  rich  in  gold;  and 
therefore,  on  the  3d  of  May,  he  again  turned  his  prow  in  quest  of 
the  ever-fleeting  Babequo.  The  lofty  summit  of  Jamaica  soon  rose 
above  the  horizon,  and  two  days'  sailing  brought  him  to  ita  shores. 
The  people  of  this  island,  brave  and  warlike,  at  first  opposed  the 
landing'  of  the  strangers,  assailing  them  from  their  canoes,  and  hurl- 
ing their  javelin.«,  in  great  numbers,  from  tho  beach.  They  were 
jmt  to  flight,  however,  by  the  superiority  of  European  weapons,  and 
the  admiral,  landing,  took  possession  of  the  island,  which  he  named 
Santiago — a  name,  indeed,  which  hiis  j)roved  unable  to  supplant  the 
beautiful  original.  The  Indiana,  with  their  usual  placability,  were 
soon  on  good  tenns  with  the  victors;  and  the  little  squadron,  as  it 
eonsti'd  along,  was  continually  surrounded  with  their  canoes.  One 
of  these,  hollowed  from  a  single  tree,  probably  the  Ceiba,  was  ninety- 
six  feet  in  length,  and  eight  in  breadth.  'J'hese  people  seemed  more 
iii;rotiions  and  industrious  than  any  yet  seen  by  the  Europeans. 

Finding  no  gold  in  Jamaica,  Columbus  again  took  his  way  to 
Cuba,  where  he  found  the  curiosity  and  reverence  of  tho  natives 
lii;,flily  excited  by  the  reports  of  those  who  had  already  met  tho 
•'xpcdition.  They  knew  of  no  end,  they  said,  to  the  land  in  which 
tli'V  dwelt,  and  he  therefore  supposed  it  to  be  a  portion  of  the  main- 


THE  STANIARDB  IN   AMEKIOA. 


67 


land  of  Asia.  Proceeding  weatwnrd,  ho  pushed  his  vay,  with  much 
danger  and  diftioulty,  througli  the  intricate  navigation  of  that  beau- 
tiful archipelago,  which  ho  named  the  Queen's  Garden,  and  which 
he  supposed  to  be  the  same  as  that  described  by  his  favourite  author. 
Finally,  gaining  the  open  sea,  he  again  landed,  on  the  8d  of  June, 
and  held  intercourse  with  the  natives.  Their  reports  confirmed  his 
error,  and  even  inspired  his  mind  with  hopes  that  he  was  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  that  fabulous  potentate,  the  renowned  Pronler 
John,  with  whom  it  had  been  the  fruitless  aim  of  so  many  sover- 
eigns to  communicate.  With  sangviino  hopes,  he  pressed  on,  meet- 
ing the  kindest  reception  from  the  inhabitants  of  the  coast,  who 
thronged  with  delight  about  his  vessel.  Ho  supposed  that  by  keep- 
ing along  the  shore,  he  should,  ere  long,  arrive  at  the  Gulf  of  tho 
Ganges  and  the  Arabiai!  Sea,  and  thence  pass  to  tho  straits  of  Babel- 
mandel.  He  even  conceived  tho  daring  project,  with  his  little  fleet 
of  open  vessels,  of  coasting  around  Africa,  triumphing  over  the  rival 
Portuguese,  and  enrolling  his  name  as  tho  first  circumnavigator  of 
the  globe. 

But  this  splendid  design,  had  his  theory  been  correct,  nmst  have 
fallen  through  from  the  inefficient  state  of  his  command.  The  car- 
avels were  wretchedly  leaky  and  sea-worn.  His  provisions  had 
nearly  given  out.  The  navigation  had  again  become  perilous,  und 
intricate  in  the  extreme,  the  coast  consisting  of  low  swamps  and  vast 
thickets  of  mangroves,  and  being  covered,  far  and  near,  with  shoals 
and  archipelagos  of  innumerable  islands.  Tj^e  crews,  worn  out  by 
toil  and  exposure,  earnestly  remonstrated  against  proceeding  further. 
Columbus  reluctantly  admitted  the  necessity  of  return ;  but  to  authen- 
ticate his  supposed  ascertainment  of  the  locality,  took  a  singular 
precaution.  Being,  it  is  suppo.scd,  somewhere  near  the  Bay  of  Phil- 
ippina,  all  hands  were  solemnly  questioned,  before  a  notary  i.i(blic, 
as  to  their  opinion  of  the  coast  they  had  surveyoil.  Pronip;.;d  by 
a  desire  for  return,  and  probably  placing  iiuplioil  faith  in  tho  judg- 
ment of  their  commander,  the  whole  command,  iuclvliiig  several 
experienced  geographers  and  navigators,  unanimously  concluded, 
that  the  land  they  had  so  long  followed  was  no  other  than  the  coa.st 
of  Asia;  and  the  notary  proclaimed  grievous  penalties  against  any 
who  should  afterwards  recant  his  opinion. 

At  the  time  of  this  extraordinary  process,  Columbus  was  so  near  tho 
western  extremity  of  the  island,  that  two  or  three  days'  sail  would  havo 
brought  him  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.    To  the  day  of  his  death,  he  firmly 


68 


THE  PEOrLE'b    BOv^K  OF  HISTORY 


believed  that  Cuba  was  the  eastern  projection  of  the  continent  of  Asia. 
On  the  13th  of  June,  he  turned  his  prow  to  the  eastward,  and  ere  long 
discovered  the  Isle  of  Pines,  which  he  named  Evangelista.  The  re- 
turn voyage,  retarded  by  storms  and  contrary  winds,  occupied  three 
months,  during  which  much  friendly  intercourse  was  held  with  the 
natives  of  Cuba  and  Jamaica.  It  was  not  until  the  last  of  Septem- 
ber that  the  squadron  regained  Isabella;  Columbus,  exhausted  by 
five  months  of  continual  anxiety,  watching  and  exposure,  being  car- 
ried ashore  completely  insensible,  and  apparently  at  the  point  of  death. 


uiiAJtijuii     Y«l, 

MISCONDUCT    OF    THE    SPANIARDS    IN    HAITI.  —  HOSTILITIES 
0?  THE    INDIANS. — THEIR    DEFEAT  AND   .ENSLAVEMENT. 
—  INJURIOUS  TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. — APPOINT- 
MENT OF  AOUADO.  —  THEIR  RETURN  TO  SPAIN. 

During  the  protracted  absence  of  their  commander,  the  mutinous 
colonists,  relieved  from  the  weight  of  his  personal  authority,  had 
fallen  into  much  license  and  anarchy.  Margarite,  instead  of  fulfilling 
the  duties  of  his  important  mission,  by  visiting  the  caciques,  concili- 
ating the  doubtful  and  overawing  the  inimical,  had  only  sought  the 
grati^catiou  of  his  own  self-importance  and  licentiousness.  His  peo- 
ple were  not  slow  to  follow  his  example;  and  the  natives,  with  alarm 
and  disgust,  beheld  their  provisions,  their  little  stock  of  gold,  and 
their  women,  forcibly  wrested  from  theui  by  those  whom,  so  little 
time  before,  they  !:ad  welcomed  as  visitors  from  the  celestial  regions. 
Diego  Columbus,  wanting  sufficient  energy,  had  been  unable  to  re- 
press these  disorders;  and  finally  Margarite  and  Father  Boyl,  hav- 
ing plunged  the  whole  colony  into  trouble,  seized  certain  of  the  ships, 
and,  with  their  faction,  dreading  the  return  of  the  admiral,  left  ha-st- 
ily  for  Spain.  The  army,  abandoned  by  its  leader,  roved  through 
the  country,  committing  all  manner  of  oulruges  on  the  Indians,  and 
exciting  tlieir  inij)lacaljle  enmity  against  the  Euroj)eans. 

The  island  of  llayti,  at  this  time,  was  di\  ided  into  five  native 
principalities  or  kingdoms,  each,  ruled  by  a  separate  caoiijui',  to  whom 
all  inferior  chieftains  in  his  district  paid  submission.    That  of  Marien, 


THE   Sl'ANIABDS   IN    AMERICA. 


59 


iu  tlie  northern  part  of  the  island,  and  surrounding  the  settlement 
of  Isabella,  was  held  by  Guftcanagari,  the  former  friend  of  Columbus. 
Over  the  beautiful  Vega  Eeal,  or  Royal  Plain,  the  richest  portion  of 
the  island,  ruled  a  powerful  chief  called  Guarionex.  The  province 
of  Xaragua,  including  the  lake  of  that  name,  in  the  west,  was  gov- 
erned by  Behechio.  Cotubanama  held  sway  over  the  territory  of 
Higuey,  in  the  east,  and  the  dreaded  Caonabo  ruled  over  Maguana, 
including  the  golden  mountains  of  Cibao.  The  population  of  the 
island  is  said,  perhaps  with  exaggeration,  to  have  amounted  to  a 
million  of  souls.  , 

Those  people,  though,  for  the  most  part,  placable  and  unwarlike, 
now,  offended  by  repeated  injuries,  had  commenced  reprisals;  and 
though  not  venturiug  on  any  open  attack,  had  cut  off  stragglers,  in 
one  instance  to  the  number  of  ten,  and  otherwise  harassed  the  intrud- 
ers. Caonabo  alone,  deeming  the^ime  propitious,  and  remembering 
his  triumph  at  La  Navidad,  ventured  on  overt  warfare.  He  marched, 
with  a  great  force,  against  the  fortress  of  St.  Thomas,  where  Ojeda, 
was  stationed  with  only  fifty  Spaniards;  but  the  latter,  strongly  for- 
tified, made  a  gallant  defence,  and  after  a  siege  lasting  thirty  days, 
the  Indians,  weary  of  the  attempt,  at  last  broke  up  and  dispersed  to 
their  homes.  Their  indomitable  cacique,  still  bent  on  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  invaders,  now  applied  all  his  energies  to  form  a  general 
confederacy  against  the  common  enemy.  All  the  caciques  returned 
favourable  Jinswers,  except  Guacanagari,  who  remained  faithful  to 
his  white  allies,  and  who,  in  consequence,  was  exposed  to  fresh  attack 
and  depredation  from  the  neighbouring  powers. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  affairs,  distracted  by  domestic  sedition 
and  menaced  by  native  hostility,  when  Columbus,  prostrated  by  dan- 
gerous illness,  was  borne  into  the  harbour  of  Isabella.  The  worst 
consequences  might  have  ensued,  but  for  the  circumstance  that  his 
brother  Bartholomew,  a  man  of  stern  and  energetic  character,  for 
many  years  the  sharer  of  his  hopes  and  disappointments,  during  hia 
absence,  had  arrived  at  the  port,  in  command  of  a  small  squadron 
freighted  with  supplies.  Incapacitated  by  illness  from  directing  the 
affairs  of  the  colony,  Columbus  conferred  on  this  brother  the  office 
of  Adelantado  or  lieutenant-governor — an  office  for  which  he  was 
eminently  qualified,  End  his  appointment  to  which  was  clearly  within 
the  scope  of  the  admiral's  authority — but  a  measure  regarded  with, 
deep  distrust  by  the  jealous  Ferdinand,  and  doubtless  injurious  to 
hid  interests  at  the  court  of  Spain. 


60 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTOBY. 


The  new  deputy  took  vigorous  measures  for  the  defence  of  the 
colony  and  its  restoration  to  order.  A  hostile  force  of  the  Indians 
was  defeated,  with  much  loss,  and  a  new  fortress  was  erected  in  the 
Vega.  Caonabo,  the  inveterate  enemy  of  the  whites,  was  secured 
by  an  extraordinary  piece  of  craft  and  audacity  practised  by  Ojeda. 
That  redoubted  cavalier,  with  only  ten  companions,  marching  for  sixty 
leagues  through  the  forests,  suddenly  presented  himself  at  the  court 
of  the  savage  chieftain.  The  latter,  charmed  with  his  boldness, 
received  him  well,  and  even  agreed  to  accompany  him  to  the  settle- 
ment. They  set  forth,  accordingly,  with  a  large  force  of  warriors, 
and  on  the  way,  the  wily  Spaniard,  under  pretence  of  ornament, 
contrived  to  fasten  on  the  wrists  of  his  companion  a  pair  of  brilliant 
steel  shackles.  Having  induced  the  fettered  cacique  to  mount  behind 
him,  he  gave  spurs  to  his  horse,  and  aft«r  a  difficult  march,  succeeded 
in  bringing  his  prize  safely  to  th^  settlement.  The  fierce  captive, 
undaunted  by  his  misfortune,  maintained  a  bold  and  haughty  de- 
meanour, even  to  the  admiral,  and  boasted  of  the  destruction  of  La 
pJ'avidad.  Ojeda,  indeed,  he  treated  with  high  respect,  admiring,  with 
true  savage  appreciation,  the  audacious  trick  by  which  he  had  been 
entrapped.  One  of  his  brothers,  a  brave  and  able  warrior,  resolved 
to  effect  his  release,  raised  a  force  of  several  thousand  men,  with 
which  he  marched  against  the  Spanish  settlement;  but  these  unclad 
and  feebly-armed  numbers  were  unable  to  withstand  the  unwonted 
terrors  of  cavalry  and  musketry,  and  were  defeated,  with  much 
slaughter,  by  Ojeda. 

In  the  autumn  (1494),  much  to  the  relief  of  the  colony,  four  ves- 
sels arrived  from  Spain,  bringing  supplies,  and  also  a  considerable 
number  of  mechanics  and  husbandmen.  On  their  return,  Columbus 
sent  home  a  considerable  quantity  of  gold,  and,  in  accordance  with 
the  barbarous  usage  of  the  day,  by  which  all  infidels  and  pagans 
were  held  as  proper  subjects  for  oppression,  five  hundred  Indian 
captives,  for  sale  in  the  slave-market  of  Seville.  To  the  honour  of 
Isabella,  on  their  arrival,  she  countermnnded  the  order  for  their  sale, 
and  directed  that  they  should  be  returin  'I  to  their  homes — dispatch- 
ing at  the  same  time,  unhappily  with  little  effoct,  strict  orders  for 
kind  and  conciliatory  treatment  toward  the  natives  in  general. 

Indignant  at  the  captivity  of  their  fcllow^sovei^ign,  all  the  caciques, 
except  Guacanagari,  entered  into  a  fresh  and  formidable  confederacy 
against  the  Spaniards.  In  March,  1495,  a  great  force,  sufrieient,  ii 
was  thought,  to  overwhelm  the  feeble  settlements  of  the  whites. 


THE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMERICA. 


61 


mustered  not  far  from  Isabella  Columbus,  now  recovered  from  his 
illness,  with  Bartholomew,  at  the  head  of  only  two  hundred  men,  the 
whole  available  force  of  the  colony,  marched  forth  to  give  them  bat- 
tle. The  disparity  of  force  was  less  than  might  be  supposed,  for  his 
men  were  armed  to  the  teeth,  after  the  European  fashion,  and  were 
provided  with  horses  and  bloodhounds — both  objects  of  especial 
terror  to  the  Indians.  He  fell  in  with  the  ill-arrayed  and  undisci- 
plined masses  of  the  enemy,  near  the  site  of  the  town  of  St.  Jago; 
and  by  a  skilful  manoeuvre,  at  once  succeeded  in  throwing  them 
into  confusion.  A  charge  of  cavalry  had  its  usual  effect;  and  the 
ferocious  bloodhounds,  the  disgrace  of  Spanish  warfare,  springing  in 
their  midst,  and  tearing  their  half  clad  bodies,  completed  the  defeat. 
Many  were  slain,  and  many  more  made  prisoners;  and  the  Indian 
army,  seized  with  a  panic,  broke  up,  and  took  refuge  in  the  mount- 
ains. The  power  of  the  confederacy  was  completely  overthrown. 
Guacanagari,  who  had  taken  part  with  the  Spaniards,  unable  to 
endure  the  general  hatred  of  his  countrymen,  betook  himself  to  a 
solitary  place,  where  he  perished  of  mortification  and  remorse. 

Nearly  the  whole  island,  after  this  decisive  action,  submitted  to 
the  victors;  and  Columbus,  marching  through  the  country,  dictated 
conditions  of  peace  to  the  vanquished  caciques,  severe  in  the  extreme. 
Fortresses  were  erected  in  their  several  provinces ;  and  to  supply  the 
heavy  tribute  demanded  by  the  conqueror,  their  people,  in  eifect, 
were  reduced  to  complete  slavery.  Each  native  over  the  age  of 
fourteen,  was  compelled  to  furnish,  every  three  months,  a  hawk's- 
bell  filled  with  gold  dust — these  tinkling  toys,  which,  so  little  before, 
had  charmed  them  as  the  gifts  of  heaven,  being,  by  a  pitiful  ooiuci- 
dence,  selected  as  the  measure  of  their  toil  and  enslavement.  The 
admiration  which  we  feel  for  the  genius  and  the  virtues  of  Colum- 
bus is  most  unpleasant'y  checked  by  the  remembrance  of  his  sever- 
ities toward  those  who  had  welcomed  him  with  such  kindness  to 
their  shores,  and  whose  feeble  enmity  had  been  excited  only  by 
repeated  wrong  and  outrage.  He  was  a  man,  undoubtedly,  in  advance 
of  his  time  in  liberality  and  humanity;  but,  de^yrous  to  substantiate 
the  importance  of  his  discoveries,  and  to  keep  up  his  credit  witli  the 
court  by  the  transmission  of  treasure,  charged  his  conscience  with  the 
enslavement  of  a  whole  people — a  light  charge,  he  may  have  thought, 
in  that  day  of  intolerance  and  cruelty,  when  unbelievers  were  held 
to  have  no  rights  at  all,  or,  if  any,  only  to  the  dry  exchange  of  their 
corporal  services  for  the  priceless  opportunity  of  conversion. 


•iH 


ii/^,' 


62 


THE  PEOPLE'S   KOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


The  careless  indolence  and  the  genial  dependence  on  propitious 
nature,  which  heretofore  had  made  the  happiness  of  these  simple 
people,  was  now  for  ever  at  an  end.  Their  slender  frames,  unaccus- 
tomed to  toil,  were  exhausted  by  the  weary  task  of  searching  the 
sands  of  their  rivulets  for  a  scanty  pittance  of  gold,  or  of  raising  food 
and  cotton  for  the  use  of  their  taskmasters.  Vainly  hoping,  by  neg- 
lecting these  supplies,  to  induce  their  oppressors  to  depart,  they 
finally  abandoned  their  homes  and  plantations,  and  took  refuge 
among  the  mountains.  Thither  their  masters  pursued  them,  to 
enforce  a  return  to  their  labuurs.  Tlicy  wandered  from  one  retreat 
to  another,  vainly  attempting  to  elude  the  vigilance  of  their  merciless 
pursuers,  ^fany  thousands  perished  of  exposure  and  starvation,  and 
the  remainder,  despairing  of  escape,  returned,  and  once  more  submit- 
ted to  the  commands  of  their  conquerors. 

While  these  affairs  were  going  on,  the  malcontents  who  had 
returned  to  Spain,  filled  the  ears  of  the  court  with  clamorous  com- 
plaints or  whispered  slander's,  fatal  to  the  credit  of  Columbus.  His 
rights  were  infringed  by  permitting  others  to  fit  out  expeditions  in 
the  same  direction,  and  a  commissioner  wus  appointed  to  investigate 
the  affairs  of  Ilispaniola.  Juun  Aguado,  the  person  intrusted  with 
this  delicate  mission,  and  a  man  whom  Columbus  had  much  obliged, 
set  sail  with  four  vessels,  freighted  with  supplies,  and  in  October, 
1495,  while  the  governor  was  absent  in  the  interior,  arrived  at  the 
port  of  Isiibella.  Mindlesss  of  former  obligations,  and  eager  to  exer- 
ci.se  his  authority,  he  commenced  with  ijidecent  haste  his  task  of 
intermeddling — collecting  every  species  of  questionable  evidence,  and 
lending  a  ready  ear  to  the  voice  of  complaint  or  calumny.  Colum- 
bus, to  avert  tin."  hostile  influence,  prepared  to  return  with  the  com- 
missioner, to  defend  his  character  and  his  rights  in  person.  Their 
departure  was  delayed  by  a  terrific  hurri'.'ane,  which  ravaged  the 
Lsland  in  a  fea-ful  manner,  and  destroyed  every  vessel  in  port, 
except  the  Niia.  This  delay  was  advantageous  to  the  admiral, 
enabling  him  to  return  under  tho  favourable  auspices  of  a  valuable 
discovery.  A  fugitive  from  the  Jaw,  by  the  favour  of  an  Indian 
woman,  with  whom  he  had  taken  n>fuge,  discovered  rich  gold  mines 
on  the  souinern  coast,  and  purcha.et  c*  his  pardon  with  the  intelligence. 
Columbus,  having  confirmed  the  truth  of  the  tidingn,  at  once  con- 
cluded that  these  were  no  other  than  the  mines  of  Ophir,  so  famous 
in  the  days  of  King  Solomon. 

The  Nina  was  repaired  and  a  new  caravel  was  built;  and  on  the 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


68 


10th  of  March,  1496,  Columbus  and  Aguado,  with  more  than  two 
hundred  colonists,  desirous  of  return,  set  sail  in  company  for  Spain. 
There  were  also  thirty  Indians,  including  Caonabo  and  his  brother. 
The  vessels,  detained  by  head  winds,  were  a  who^e  month  in  getting 
to  Guadaloupe.  They  left  that  island  on  the  20th  of  April,  and  for 
a  month  longer  tediously  beat  against  the  trades.  The  over-crowded 
crews,  beset  by  the  danger  of  famine,  were  put  on  short  allowance, 
and,  but  for  the  stern  interposition  of  Columbus,  would  have  thrown 
overboard  or  devoured  their  unhappy  captives.  The  two  chiefs 
''dyed  by  the  way,  for  very  psnsiveness  and  anguish  of  minde,"  and 
the  vessels,  on  the  10th  of  June,  in  miserable  plight,  euucred  the  bay 
of  Cadiz. 


LJnlAlriJcjxi    vix, 


THE   DUCLININO   FORTUNES    OF    C0LUMBU3.  —  DIFFICULTT    IN 
FITTING  OUT  AN  EXPEDITION- — SAILS  ON  HIS   THIRD   VOY- 
AGE.— THE  DISCOVERT  OF  SOUTH   AMERICA. — EXTRAOR- 
DINARY  THEORY. — COLUMBUS  ARRIVES   AT   HAYTI. — 

DISORDERS   THERE. — THE   REBELLION   OF   ROLDAN. 

HOSTILITIES  WITH  THE  INDIANS. THEIR  DEFEAT. 


Public  opinion,  disappointed  in  the  returns  of  treasure  which  it 
had  expected,  now,  with  its  usual  reaction,  had  turned  against 
Columbus,  and  put  an  inferior  estimate  on  his  discoveries.  Like  a 
man  disposed  to  humour  the  caprices  of  Fortune,  or  perhaps  desirous 
to  propitiate  her  by  humiliation,  he  now  appeared  in  the  homely 
garb  of  a  Franciscan,  girt  around  with  a  cord,  and  his  beard  long 
and  neglected.  Ilis  patrons,  despite  tne  sinister  report  of  Aguado, 
received  him  graciously,  and  promised  that  six  ships,  which  he 
desired  for  the  purpose  of  extending  his  explorations,  should  be 
placed  at  his  disposal.  But  the  intrigues  of  h's  enemies,  and  the 
engrossing  interests  of  European  ambition,  in  which  the  soven  'pp'is 
were  involved,  subjected  him  to  repeated  disappointment  and  dcuiy. 
The  king,  prejudiced  by  slanderous  reports,  and  jealous  of  the  great 
pcAvcrs  he  had  conferred,  began  to  look  coldly  on  him;  but  Isabella 
sIoikI  his  firm  friend,  and,  as  far  as  she  oould,  protected  his  interest.'* 


64 


THK  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


against  the  rapacity  of  rival  aspirants.  She  wen  offered  to  create 
him  duke,  with  an  exteuLiVc'  piincipality  in  Hiopaniola;  but,  fearing 
to  excite  fresh  envy,  he  '.   iincd  the  tempting  proposal. 

The  difficulty  expericnccJ  in  fitting  out  the  desired  expedition, 
and  the  reluctance  of  adventurers  to  embark,  formed  a  striking  con- 
trast with  the  display  of  royal  favour  and  popular  enthusiasm,  which 
had  marked  his  last  dopcrture  from  the  shores  of  Spain.  The 
intrigues  of  Fonseca,  the  superintende*i  of  Indian  affairs,  avd  hi? 
secret  enemy,  produced  delays  intolerable  to  his  eager  anc"  adventur- 
ous spirit;  and  tho  alarm  t'>;cited  by  the  reports  of  the  diPHpj  ointed 
refugees,  withheld  volunteers  from,  hastily  embarking  on  a  il-r  l-tful 
expedition.  Arl  Jtrary  orders  were  finally  issued  lor  the  impress- 
ment of 'vessels  zud  their  crews;  and  to  supply  the  deficiency  in  fhe 
required  number  .*'  o olonists,  resort  was  liad  to  the  iia.serable  expe- 
dient of  embanking  coivict.^  ;  id  other  ill  characters  for  the  settle- 
ment of  the  islaiida.  It  was  r'ol  ViuUl  tht  30th  of  M;iy,  1498,  that 
Columbus,  with  .six  vtsael^,  set  :-,'\  fi^oT '  Ui«  poji  of  San  Lncar,  on 
his  third  ■^'oyage  to  i:hc  N',nv  Wor'i'l. 

Touching  at  the  Ciinfin*  :■?,  ho  ».'i>  ■Mtf.'bed  thr«e  of  his  ves-sels, 
freighted  with  supplies,  i  .r  tho  ush;  of  tho  ct'lony,  and  with  the  re- 
inainder,  on  the  5ih  of  June,  ug.'iin  took  his  demrtnre,  steering 
fouth  west,  that  he  might  make  the  chores  of  Asia  (is  he  supposed), 
jii  tho  neigh bi'urlioijd  of  the  equator.  This  course,  ere  long,  lod 
him  into  flmt  terrible  region  of  heat  and  dead  atmosphere,  extend- 
ing for  sever.)!  degr«;es  on  Ixji's  sides  of  the  line,  and  known  to  navi- 
gators as  "iL,'  cfdm  latitudes. '  It  seemed  as  if  tho  old  fables  of  the 
torrid  zone  were  ?o  be  verified,  for,  (says  av  ancient  writer)  "hee 
was  so  vexed  witi;  jnaladies  and  heate,  that  his  shippes  were  almost 
set  on  fire."  Tne  ta;  boiled  from  the  seams,  the  casks  shrank  and 
fell  to  pieces,  the  provisions  spoiled,  and  the  crews  were  w  hered 
and  pr<,^3trat.M  by  the  heat.  By  the  tim.e  he  emerged  from  this  bale- 
fuJ  region  into  cooler  waters  and  more  favourable  breezes,  the  squad-  - 
ron  was  in  such  a  condition  that  it  was  necessary  to  .seek  land  as 
speedily  as  possibh,  A ccordingly,  having  steered  westward  a  long 
time  without  seeing  land,  he  headed  more  to  the  north  iri  search  of 
the  Carril)ean  islands.  There  wa.s  only  a  single  cask  of  water  in 
each  vessel,  v.iien,  on  the  31st  of  July,  land  was  seen  from  the 
mast-head. 

Tho  admiral  had  piously  resolved  to  call  the  first  land  he  should 
fall  in  with  after  the  most  Holy  Trinity;  and  that  before  him  con- 


THE   SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


65 


sisting  of  three  mountainous  summits,  he  regarded  the  coincidence 
as  a  special  providence,  and  accordingly,  with  much  solemnity,  be- 
stowed on  it  the  title  of  La  Trinidad — the  title  which  it  still  retains. 
The  voyagers  coasted  along  this  beautiful  island,  delighted  with  the 
see"  ry,  the  climate,  and  the  rustic  dwellings  of  men  which  they 
perceived  on  its  shores.  The  natives,  a  fair  and  handsome  race, 
ca'n'  "round  the  ships  in  their  canoes,  but  could  not  be  induced  to 
veiitu '  en  Vaard.  On  the  Ist  of  August,  the  explorers  made  what 
tluvy  .-supposed  to  be  another  island,  lying  south,  but  which  was  in 
reality  a  part  of  the  South  American  continent.  Passing  the  dan- 
gerous .strait  which  separates  the  island  from  the  main-land,  and 
V  ^ich  iQ  called  "  Boca  de  la  Sierpe,"  (Mouth  of  the  Serpent,)  Colum- 
bus entered  the  Gulf  of  Paria. 

As  he  advanced,  the  water  grew  fresher,  and  he  justly  concluded 
that,  streams  so  copious  as  to  affect  such  an  expanse  of  sea  could 
only  be  the  outpouring  of  a  continent.  An  extraordinary  theory 
now  took  possession  of  his  mind.  The  climate,  although  in  a  lati- 
tude so  near  the  equator,  was  mild  and  refreshing — a  circumstance 
for  which  he  could  account  only  by  supposing  that  his  ships,  under 
the  steady  and  favourable  influence  of  the  trades,  had  gradually 
ascended  an  acclivity  leading  to  a  portion  of  the  earth's  surface  ele- 
vated above  the  rest.  The  summit  of  this  wonderful  eminence 
approaching  the  purer  region  of  the  heavens,  he  concluded,  could 
be  no  other  tlian  the  original  Garden  of  Eden,  the  Terrestrial  Para- 
dise, sought  so  long  in  vain  by  curious  geographers  and  travellers; 
and  the  pure  streams  around  him,  freshening  the  ocean  wave,  had 
doubtless  flowed  from  the  River  of  Life,  still  .springing  from  its 
fountain  by  the  Tree  of  Knowledge.  This  extraordinary  theory, 
(quite  in  accordance,  however,  with  the  genius  of  the  age,)  Columbus, 
in  a  long  and  elaborate  disquisition,  urged  upon  the  court  of  Spain 
— fortifying  his  onolusion  with  copious  extracts  from  the  Scriptures, 
from  the  f.ainta  and  fathers,  from  ti)o  writings  of  heathen  philoso- 
ph(  rs,  and  of  the  learned  of  his  own  day. 

Sailing  westward,  he  found  the  sea  shallower,  and  by  a  light  expe- 
dition, verified  the  existence  of  a  continent  and  of  great  rivers  which 
it  poured  into  the  ocean.  The  natives,  whom  he  encountered  on  the 
northern  shore,  were  f:*''  ''n  ;';.j'.';aranu;,  and  of  a  frank  and  martial 
demeanour.  They  r  ■  ved  the  Span' "rds  with  profound  reverence, 
and  readily  parte<i  ..  ith  their  ornaments  jf  pearl,  which  had  attractcil 
the  cupidity  of  tlirr  visitors.  Turning  eastward,  *'-e  admiral  passed 
Vol.  IIL— 5 


i 


■it.    Mv    ■■:   ' 


60 


THE   PEOPLE'S    BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


out  of  tlic  gulf  by  its  northern  outlet,  a  narrow  and  tumultuoua 
strait,  to  which,  on  account  of  its  perils,  he  gave  the  name  of  "Boca 
del  Dragon,"  (Mouth  of  the  Dragon).  Soon  after,  he  discovered  the 
the  islands  of  Margarita  and  Cubagtia,  famous  for  their  pearls,  and 
would  doubtless  have  prosecuted  farther  his  search  for  the  Terrestrial 
Paradise,  but  for  a  painful  disease  of  the  eyes,  rendering  him  inca- 
pable of  observation.  Altering  his  course  to  the  north-west,  in  five 
days'  sailing,  he  made  the  island  of  Hispaniola,  and  by  the  80th  of 
August,  came  to  the  river  Ozcnia,  near  the  lately-discovered  gold 
district.  Age,  exposure,  and  constant  anxiot}-,  as  before,  had  done 
their  work,  and  he  came  into  port  sufTcring  grievously  from  a  com- 
plication of  maladies. 

During  the  absence  of  the  governor,  his  brother  Bartholomew, 
whom  he  had  left  in  command  of  the  colony,  had  displayed  great 
energy  and  judgment  in  conducting  its  affairs;  but  the  disorderly 
elements  of  which,  for  tne  most  part,  it  was  composed,  had  proved 
too  turbulent  and  refractory  even  for  his  vigorous  rule.  Ilis  admin- 
istration, indeed,  commenced  au.«ipiciously.  He  founded  the  city  of 
St.  Domingo,  on  the  Ozoma,  near  the  new  mines,  and  skilfully  ap- 
plied himself  to  developing  the  resources  of  the  country.  lie  made 
a  visit  to  Bthechio,  the  powerful  caci(|ue  of  Xaragua,  who,  with  his 
subjects,  received  him  with  much  kindness  and  hospitality.  These 
kindly  peojilc  left  no  moans  untried  to  cheer  and  divert  their  visitors, 
and  for  their  aniu.senicnt  performed  their  national  games  and  tour- 
naments, fighting  with  such  spirit,  that  numbers  were  slain  or 
wounded.  The  cacique  readily  acknowledged  the  .sovereignty  of  the 
Spanish  authorities,  and  agreed  to  pay  a  large  tribute  of  cotton  and 
other  v.iluablc  itroduce;  for  his  coujitrv  afforded  no  <?old.     "There 

If  *f  o 

is  something  exceedingly  allecting  in  the  cheerful  and  generous  sjjirit 
which  these  gentle  beings  always  evinceil  towards  their  visitors,  until 
driven  into  resistance  by  oppression;  and  the  readine.'«s  with  which 
they  yielded  their  simple  allegiance  to  the  evident  8Uj)eriority  of 
this  handful  of  strangers,  proves  the  ease  with  which  their  liappiiH'ss 
and  the  prosperity  of  the  white  men  might  have  been  reconciled  by 
a  humane  and  considerate  policy." 

But  while  the  adelanta-'o  wjis  absent  on  this  visit,  the  brutal  and 
rapacious  colonii^ts  inflicted  such  oppressions  on  the  unhappy  natives, 
theii*  serfs  and  tributaries,  that,  ns  we  have  already  mentioned,  great 
ijimbcrs  took  refuge  in  the  mountains,  hojjing,  by  this  abandonment 
of  their  labours,  to  starve  the  o])pre.>;sors  into  departure.     ConsidtTu- 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN   AMERICA. 


67 


blc  distress  ensued,  and  Bartholemew,  in  his  return,  divided  tlio 
malcontents  among  a  chain  of  military  posts  which  he  had  established, 
and  also  removed  a  considerable  number  to  St.  Domingo.  Fresh 
difiicultics  were  soon  occasioned  b}'  the  bigoted  cruelt}'  of  the  priests, 
who,  to  avenge  the  destruction  of  some  images,  in  a  chapel  of  tho 
virgin,  burned  alive,  after  the  merciless  custom  of  their  age  and  order, 
certain  of  the  subjects  of  Guarionex.  That  powerful  cacique,  indig- 
nant at  this  atrocity,  set  on  foot  a  fresh  conspiracy.  A  general  mas- 
sacre of  the  Spaniards,  to  be  effected  on  the  day  of  tribute,  was 
planned,  and  the  Indians  of  the  Vaga,  to  the  number  of  several 
thousanils,  assembled  in  that  beautiful  plain.  But  the  adelantado, 
advised  of  their  scheme,  marching  by  stealth,  fell  on  their  quarters 
in  the  dead  of  night,  and  carried  off  fourteen  of  the  principal  caciques. 
Two  of  these  were  executed,  and  the  Indians,  fearing  for  the  others, 
hastened  to  submit.  Guarionex,  in  consideration  of  the  great  inju- 
ries which  he  had  received,  was,  with  politic  clemency,  pardoned  by 
the  victor,  and  peace,  for  a  time,  was  restored  to  the  island. 

It  was  much  easier,  indeed,  for  tho  shrewd  and  vigorous  deputy 
to  overawe  and  conciliate  the  natives  than  to  maintain  authority 
over  the  mutinous  colonists,  by  whom  he  was  envied  as  a  foreigner, 
and  to  whom  the  wholesome  strictness  of  his  rule  had  rendered  him 
doubly  odious.  One  Francisco  Koldan,  a  man  whom,  from  tlie  post 
of  a  menial  in  his  kitchen,  Columbus,  discerning  his  abilities,  had 
rai.'ed  to  the  office  of  alcalde  or  judge  of  the  island,  was  the  chief 
mover  of  sedition.  By  promises  and  indulgence,  he  conciliated  a 
large  band  of  idlers  and  desj)eradocs,  backed  by  whom,  he  set  at 
nought  the  amiable  but  feeble  rule  of  Diego,  now  governor  of  Isa- 
bella. Finally,  these  reprobates,  having  broken  open  the  public 
warehouses  of  that  city,  and  supplied  themselves  from  the  contents, 
took  up  their  march  for  Xaragua,  where,  says  an  author  of  the  day, 
with  fitting  indignation,  "  this  filthy  sinkc  of  rebels  lined  in  all  kinde 
of  misehiefe,  robbing  the  people,  spoyling  the  countrey,  and  rauishing 
both  wyves  and  virgins."  Tlu>  adelantado,  having  vainly  attempted 
to  negotiate  with  the  insurgents,  proclaimed  them  traitors  and  rebels; 
but  from  the  inefficiency  of  the  force  at  his  command,  was  unable  to 
suppress  the  revolt. 

A  fresh  conspiracy  among  the  Indians,  excited  by  these  wretches, 
soon  occupied  his  attention,  and  aroused  all  his  Energies.  Guarionex, 
his  plans  disconcerted,  t(  'v  refuge  with  Mayonabex,  chief  of  the 
("iguayans,  who  joined   ■         i  carrying  on  a  harassing  and  desultoiy 


1 


dd 


TUU  FKOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  1II8T0KY. 


warfare  against  the  whitea.  The  indefatigable  Bartholeincw,  with  a 
small  force,  made  hia  way  into  their  alinoat  inaccessible  mountain 
fustneiwes,  defeating  a  largo  body  of  Indians,  who  uppoaed  him  at 
the  pa.>-sage  of  a  ford,  and  who,  what  with  paint  and  the  war-whoop, 
seemed,  says  the  chronicler,  "so  many  (i  .ii  .     't  newly  broke 

out  of  hell."  Des{)ite  this  niisfortui .  J.o  hi).'''l;i  .d  cacique  refused 
to  surrender  hia  guest,  ;ind  when  threatened  with  all  the  terrors  of 
lire  and  sword,  in  event  of  hia  oU«tiiiacy,  replied  to  the  mesaenger, 
"Tell  the  Spaniards  that  the)  are  bad  men,  cruel  and  tyrannical; 
usuipers  of  the  teiiitory  of  others,  and  shedders  of  innocent  blood; 
I  have  no  desire  of  the  frieuiship  of  such  men.  G"  "i'  ..:  ..i  a 
good  man,  he  is  my  I'riend,  he  is  my  guest,  he  hu3  lied  to  me  for 
refuge,  1  have  promised  to  piotect  him,  and  I  will  keep  n.y  word." 
But  after  a  long  and  hi  .ussing  warfare,  the  unfortunate  caciques, 
their  villagea  destroyed  b^  ire,  were  compelled  to  take  refuge  among 
the  dill's  and  eaves,  when,  worn  out  with  fatigue  and  hunger,  they 
were  tinally  captured.  Their  lives  were  spared,  and  the  adclantado 
returned  to  St.  Domingo. 

There,  after  an  alhcnce  of  two  years  and  a  half,  Columbus,  wearied 
by  toil  and  exhausted  by  illnesi*,  had  just  arrived.  An  infinitude 
of  troubles  immediately  beset  him.  The  vessels,  which  lie  had  dis- 
patched from  the  Canaries,  touching  at  Xaragua,  had  afforded  the 
rebels,  by  means  of  artifice,  a  large  supply  of  arms  and  munitions, 
and  many  of  the  convi.its  had  joinod  them.  Anxious,  at  all  events, 
to  relieve  the  settlement  of  this  crew  of  desperadoes,  he  offered  a  free 
passage  to  Spain  to  all  who  desired  it,  and  invited  Iloldan,  assuring 
him  of  safety,  to  a  personal  interview.  But  the  latt-T  dispatched  an 
insolent  answer;  and  so  widely  had  di.safl'ection  f  pread,  that  the  gov- 
ernor, on  mustering  hia  forces,  found  but  a  mere  handf  !  of  men 
under  his  flag,  lie  was  thereiore  cor^  .  lied  ♦  send  of  Sis  Bhi])h 
without  them,  but  wrote  to  the  court,  detailing  his  discoveries,  send- 
ing sjK^cimcns  of  gold  and  pearls,  and  entreating  a.ssistance  and 
countenance.  The  reb'-la  also  forwarded  .  bl.itenient  of  iheir  own, 
which,  backed  by  men  of  influence,  was  uighly  injuriuaa  to  hia 
interests  at  court 


THE  BPANIARDS  IN   AMEBIC/ 


69 


TRIUMPH  OP  THE  REBELS. — COLUMBUS  RUINED   AT  COURT- 
APPOINTMENT  OP  BOBADILLA.  —  HIS  INSOLENCE. — COLUM- 
Bls   SENT    TO    SPAIN    IN    CHAINS. — SENSATION    OP    T  H  K 
NATION.  —  VERBAL   REDRESS.  —  APPOINTMENT  OP  OVAN- 
DO. — FOURTH   AND   LAST   VOYAGE  OP  COLUMBUS    TO 
THE  NEW   WORLD.  —  DESTRUCTION  OP  HIS  ENEMIES 
BY  TEMPEST.  —  HIS  CRUISE  ON  THE  COASTS  OP 
HONDURAS,    COSTA    RICA,     ETC.  —  sEARCH 
POR  A  STRAIT. — HIS  DISAPPOINTMENT. 


Prejudiced  by  the  representations  of  his      cmies,  the  sovereigns 
hesitated  to  confirm  the  authority  of  their  governor  against  the 
insurgent  fction;  and  he  was  accordingly  compelled  to  make  peace 
with  the  rebc'.s  on  terms  dishonourable  to  his  office  and  to  the  crown 
which  he  represented.     Koldun  was  reinstated  in  his  post  of  alcalde, 
and  he  and  his  followers,  to  quiet  their  rapacity,  received  \arjs<'  grants 
cf  land    ->f  Indian  slaves,  and  other  property  and  privileges.     Co- 
liiiiihiis  w     Id  now  havf  returned  to  Spain,  to  plead  in  person  his 
rights  and       crests,  bui  ibr  a  vexatious  incident  arising  from  their 
fnsh  infringement.     Alonzo  de  Qjeda,  his  former  follower,  inflamed 
by  tlie  ncconi       )f  his  late  voyage,  had  been  allowed,  by  the  favour 
of  Fonseca,  to  tit  out  .ui  expedition  in  the  same  direction.     "With 
liim  wont  Amerigo  V'       icci,  who  by  a  fraudulent  claim  (nuidc  by 
himself  or  oiIkts  in  hi^    uime)  afterwards  succeeded  in  wresting  from 
tlie  true  discoverer  tlie  glory  of  conferring  a  name  on  the  western 
continent.     This  expedition,  which  sailed  in  May,  1199,  guided  by 
the  charts  of  Columbus,  had  coasted  along  the  shores  of  South 
America,  and  had  discovered  the  Gulf  of  Venezuela.     Touching  at 
various  island.^,  the  rapacious  commander  had  kidnajiped  a  store  of 
sl.ives,  and  finally,  landing  in  Ilispaniola,  continued  there  the  same 
ritrocious  nursuit.     The  crafl  and  audacitv  of  Roldan,  whom  the 
irovernijr  dispatched  against  the  intruder,  compelled  him  to  quit  the 
co:ist,  antl,  turning  his  [irows  to  the  unp    >tected  islamlsof  the  arehi- 
pehiL'o,  he  made  up  his  living  freight,  luid  carried  it   to  the  slave- 
iii;irki-t  of  Cadiz. 

Hardly  was  this  vexatious  affair  disposed  of,  when  a  new  conspir- 


TU£  rKOl'LK'S   BOOK  OF   JIlBToUY 


iit-y  of  tlio  colouists,  lioailcd  by  ono  Adriua  do  Moxica,  broke  out. 
ColurnbuH,  with  a  low  attendutits,  hu-slciicd  to  the  scene,  and,  com- 
ing on  the  insurgenly  hy  night,  woized  tlio  personM  of  the  ringleuderrt. 
Moxica  was  ordered  to  bo  hanged  on  the  summit  of  Fort  Coucepeion. 
lIoj)ing,  j)erh»j)9,  to  save  his  own  life,  ho  accused  some  innocent  per- 
Bons;  on  which  tlie  governor,  in  one  of  his  rare  but  uncontrolhiblo 
fits  of  anger,  commanded  him  to  Ihj  Hung  headlong  from  the  battle- 
ments. Th  whole  revolt  was  rciressed  with  the  utmost  sternneAi 
and  promptifcude,  and  Columbus,  a  part  of  the  iu-surgents  crushed,  and 
the  rest  conciliated,  began  to  hope  for  an  opportunity  to  establish 
tJie  government  on  a  more  stable  footing. 

But  numerous  and  j)owerfiil  enemies,  possessing  the  ear  of  tho 
court,  were  contiimally  undermining  his  reputation;  and  troops  of 
discontented  vagabonds,  shipped  from  tho  colony,  surrounded  tho 
})alace,  antl  annoyed  its  inmates  by  their  clamours  Ibr  pay,  for  redress, 
or  for  cliarity.  By  his  pertinacity  in  enforcing  the  serldom  of  tho 
natives,  he  had  alienated  the  favour  of  Isabella,  who  now  ceased  to 
protect  his  interests;  and  the  jealous  Ferdinand,  long  anxious  for  a 
prete.vt  to  resume  the  high  dignities  which  he  had  unwarily  granted, 
soon  found  the  moans  toetTect  his  purposes.  Columbus  hud  re(|uested 
that  a  judge  and  an  umpire,  learned  in  the  law,  for  the  purpose  of 
settling  disputes,  might  be  .sent  to  the  i.sland;  and  the  king,  taking 
advantage  of  this  suggestion,  appointed  ono  Francisco  Bobadilla,  a 
man  ol  a  j)assiouate  and  vainglorious  temper,  to  this  oOice,  provid- 
ing him  with  a  secret  letter,  to  be  produced  if  the  culj)ability  of 
Columbus  should  be  proved,  and  conferring  on  hina  the  supreme 
authority  in  the  island. 

On  the  liod  of  August,  1500,  he  arrived  at  the  jM)rt  of  St.  Dimingo, 
where,  to  his  horror  and  indignation,  he  beheld  the  body  of  a  Span- 
iard hanging  to  a  gibbet  on  either  bank  of  the  river,  being  those  of 
certain  insurgents,  executed  by  order  of  the  governor.  Many  others 
were  in  prison,  and  on  his  entrance  into  the  town,  he  demanded  of 
Diego  Columbus,  tlien  in  conunand,  that  they  should  bo  delivered 
over  to  himself.  The  latter  refusing,  he  proceeded  to  church,  where, 
with  j)rodigioU8  pomposity,  he  read  the  secret  missive  of  the  .sover- 
eigns, and  then,  with  a  huge  array  of  malcontents  and  loiterers,  pro- 
ceeded to  the  prison.  Though  no  opposition  wius  made,  tlie  doughty 
knight,  provided  with  .scaliiig-ludilers  and  battering  implement.'^, 
made  a  ridiculous  show  of  taking  it  by  storm,  and  nuide  .seizure  of 
the  prisoners  with  great  usaumptiou  of  importance,     lie  then  took 


9 


THE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMKUKJA.  71 

posscflHion  of  tho  liou.so  of  tho  nbHcnt  ^^ovcrnor,  and  sci/x'tl  on  all 
his  property;  "and,  in  hliort,  conducted  himself  with  ull  tho  insolence 
and  rapacity  which  niij;ht  be  expcctcil  from  a  man  of  hin  chara<;tcr, 
whoso  elevation  to  olfice  wua  dependent  on  his  assertion  of  the  guilt 
of  his  predecessor." 

Columbus,  on  hearing  of  tho  arrival  of  Bobadilla,  and  of  certain 
rash  edicts,  which,  to  secure  popularity,  the  latter  had  issued,  wrote 
a  letter  of  caution  to  him,  supposing  that  ho  was  imprudently  ex- 
ceeding his  powers.     Tho  intruder,  in  reply,  asserted  tho  authority 
ho  had  received,  and  j)eremptorily  ordered  the  deposed  governor 
to  apjjcar  before  him.     Travelling  in  a  lonely  manner,  stung  to  the 
heart  by  the  ingratitude  of  his  patrons,  the  injured  admiral  obeyed; 
and  on  his  arrival,  the  vile  usurper  of  his  rights,  mindless  of  his 
age,  his  dignity,  and  his  great  name,  ordered  him  to  be  ironed  hke  a 
common  felon.     This  outrage  he  endured  with  tho  calmness  of  a 
mind  steeled  by  interior  grief  against  any  mere  external  manifesta- 
tion of  wrong.     No  word  of  impatience  or  resentment  escaped  him. 
"Columbus,"  says  his  biographer,  "could  not  stoop  to  deprecate  tho 
arrogance  of  a  weak  and  violent  man  like  Bobadilla.     lie  looked 
beyond  this  shallow  agent  and  all  his  petty  tyranny  to  the  sov- 
ereigns  who  employed    him.      It   was  their  injustice    and   their 
ingratitude  alone  that  could  wound  his  spirit;  and  he  felt  assured 
that  when  the  truth  came  to  be  known,  they  would  blush  to  find 
how  greatly  they  had  wronged  him."      Uis  brothers  were   also 
arrested,  and   all  were   separately  confineil  on  board  of  difTerent 
vessels,  ignorant  of  the  charges  against  them,  while  every  .species 
of  slanderous  complaint  and  corrupt  evidence,  aftbrded  by  such  as 
had  felt  the  strictness  of  his  rule,  was  greedily  received  by  the 
new  governor. 

In  October,  1500,  manacled  like  the  vilest  of  culprits,  the  most 
faithful  and  eminent  servant  of  the  Spanish  crown  was  sent  homo 
from  the  island  which  he  had  discovered  and  the  city  he  had  founded. 
The  vessel  once  out  at  sea,  the  commander,  a  man  of  honour  and 
feeling,  would  have  taken  oiV  his  irons;  but  the  admiral  refused  to 
allow  him.  "Their  majesties,"  he  said,  with  sternness  and  gravity, 
"eonunanded  me  by  letter  t<>  submit  to  whatever  Bobadilla  should 
Order  in  their  name;  by  their  authority  he  has  jmt  upon  me  these 
chains;  I  will  wear  them  until  they  shall  order  them  to  be  taken  otf, 
and  1  will  preserve  them  afterwards  as  relies  and  memorials  of  the 
reward  of  my  services."     It  is  said  that  afterwards  thoy  were  always 


72 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY. 


seen  banging  in  his  cabinet;  and  he  charged  that  when  he  died  they 
should  be  buried  with  him  iu  the  grave.* 

The  vessel  came  into  Cadiz,  and  these  disgraceful  facta  were  soon 
universally  known.     The  nation  was  shocked  and  indignant,  and  the 
court,  eager  to  rescue  itself  from  obloquy,  wrote  to  Columbus  at 
once,  deploring  the  unhappy  results  of  their  mission  (which,  indeed, 
they  had  not  anticipated),  and  inviting  him  honourably  to  court. 
Accordingly,  he  ap]>eared,  with  much  state  and  dignity,  before  the 
sovereigns  at  Granada,  and  was  received, with  the  highest  consider- 
ation.    Isabella  was  mc/ed  to  tears,  and  on  beholding  them,  his  own 
fortitude,  which  unshaken  had  withstood  such  rude  assaults,  gave 
way,  and  he  fell  on  his  knees  before  her,  speechless  from  weeping 
and  emotion.    Kccovering  himself,  he  entered  on  an  eloquent  vindi- 
cation of  liis  character,  and  the  justice  of  his  administration.     He 
had  already  written  to  a  friend  at  court,  defending  his  past  career 
and  exposing  the  injustice  of  his  treatment:    "I  have  been  much 
aggrieved,"  proceeds  this  forcible  document,  "that  a  person  should 
be  sent  out  to  investigate  my  conduct,  who  knew  that  if  the  inquest 
sent  home  should  be  of  a  grave  nature,  he  would  remain  in  the  gov- 
ernment.        *****         J  }mve  been  judged  as  a 
governor  who  had  been  sent  to  take  charge  of  a  well-regulated  city, 
under  the  dominion  of  long-established  laws,  where  there  was  no 
danger  of  every  thing  running  to  disorder  and  ruin;  but  I  oiiglit  to 
be  judged  as  a  captain,  sent  to  subdue  a  numerous  and  hostile  j)eo- 
ple,  of  manners  and  religion  ojiposite  to  ours,  living,  not  in  regular 
towns,  but  in  forest.s  and  mountains.     It  ought  to  be  considered  that 
I  have  brouglit  all  tliese  under  subjection  to  their  miijostii's,  giving 
them  dominion  over  another  world,  by  which  Spain,  heretofore  poor, 
lijis  suddenly  beoome  rich.    What(.'ver  errors  I  may  have  fallen  into, 
they  were  not  witli  an  evil  intention." 

This  forcible  apjjeal  was  not  without  efleet  on  the  minds  of  the 

♦  In  a  K'ltor  to  the  m>viTi>i^,m»,  ('(inHidiTcd  iiutlu-iitic,  writti-ii  from  the  (K-t'iu-  of  his 
all ip wreck  in  JiHiiiiii.a,  In-  assigns  a  siii^jiilar  rcasou  i<<r  this  resolvi-.  "Alan!''  lie 
<;>ciaiiDs,  "pii-ty  and  ju»tii'o  liuve  ri-tirrJ  to  tlii'ir  li.il-.'titioim  alnivu,  uiid  it  la  a  ^'riiiiu 
to  liav(>  undcrt'kiMi  and  {H'rforint'd  tiMi  Miiicli.  •  •  ♦  O  lili-sst  d  tnollicr 
of  CJod.  that  ooiniia.-isionMti's  llie  tnisi-riiliK'  and  o|i]ireNni>d,  why  di<l  not  orncl  Hoha- 
dilla  kill  me  when  he  rvddn-d  me  and  my  brother  of  our  deiirly-pnrohiised  jri>ld,  and 
Rent  us  to  S|>.''in  in  chains  without  trial,  crime,  oi  Mhad<iw  of  misconduct?  These 
ehains  nre  all  the  treasures  I  have,  and  tlicy  shall  be  buried  with  me,  if  I  chanee  to 
have  II  coffin  «)r  grave;  fur  I  would  have  the  remembrance  of  »o  unjust  an  action  ]>tri.sh 
icii'.  iiir,  andfirtr  thf  glury  if  the  .S'/WHi.t/t  natn.-,  In:  eirrnally  fur-'iillen." 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


73 


Bovereigns.  They  promised  that  Bobadilla  should  be  dismissed  from 
office,  and  that  his  honours  and  dignities,  ere  long,  should  be  fully 
restored  to  Columbus.  But  this  engagement,  it  is  probable,  Ferdi- 
nand, at  least,  never  intended  to  fulfil. 

The  value  of  his  discoveries,  and  ihe  immense  powers  which  their 
rule  conferred  on  him,  were  becoming  every  day  more  apparent. 
Private  expeditions,  dispatched  in  infringement  of  his  rights,  had 
demonstrated  the  existence  of  immense  territories  lying  in  the  west- 
ern ocean,  Nino,  one  of  his  pilots,  in  1499,  sailing  in  a  small  caravel, 
had  voyaged  along  much  of  the  northern  coast  of  South  America, 
and  had  brought  home  a  rich  treasure  of  pearls  and  gold.  Vicente 
Pinzon,  in  January  of  the  following  year,  had  crossed  the  line,  made 
further  surveys,  and  had  discovered  the  mighty  river  Amazon, 
Sebastian  Cabot,  in  his  voyage  of  1497,  had  ascertained  the  exist- 
ence of  an  extensive  continent  at  the  north;  and  the  Portuguese 
Cabral,  sailing  for  India  by  the  easterly  route,  had  accidentally  fallen 
in  with  Brazil.  All  these  regions,  and  those  discovered  by  Colum- 
bus himself,  were,  however,  still  regarded  as  portions  of  the  coast 
of  Asia  or  its  contiguous  islands.  The  interests  of  Spain  in  this 
newly-found  world  were  regarded  by  the  jealous  king,  despite  his 
solemn  aflirmations,  as  too  vast  to  be  entrusted  to  the  fidelity  of  a 
single  subject. 

lie  promised  the  admiral  that  if  he  would  wait  for  two  years, 
until  the  troubles  of  the  colony  should  be  quieted  by  some  oflicer 
acceptable  to  all,  he  should,  at  the  cud  of  that  time,  be  fully  rein- 
stated in  all  his  powers  and  dignities.  With  this  deceitful  assurance 
Columbus  was  compelled  to  appear  satisfied ;  and  Nicholas  de  Ovando, 
a  man  of  agreeable  manners  and  of  some  ability,  but  mean,  rapacious, 
and  cruel  in  the  extreme,  was  appointed  to  the  suprciae  command 
(already,  by  solemn  contract,  assured  to  Columbus)  over  :.n  lands 
and  islands  discoverod  by  Spanish  subjects  in  the  New  Wt  rid.  It 
was  trusted  that  by  his  prudence  and  authority,  and  the  extraordi- 
nary outfit  which  was  prepared,  he  might  remedy  the  disorders  pro- 
duced by  the  mal-administration  of  Bobadilla,  under  whose  brief 
but  unprincipled  rule,  the  licentious  colonists  had  plunged  in  vari- 
ous excesses,  and  exercised  the  cruoh'st  tyranny  toward  the  unhappy 
natives.  On  the  13th  of  February,  laOl,  with  thirty  sail,  carrying 
twfuty-flve  hundred  persons,  many  of  them  men  of  rank  and  dis- 
tinction, and  bearing  the  germ  of  negro  slavery,  (destined,  at  a 
f'utun-  day,  to  be  the  ruin  of  the  island,)  Ovando  sailed  for  llispaniola. 


I  , 


74. 


TllK   Pi:01'LE'8    BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


In  a  tenible  storm,  which  arose  just  after  his  departure,  one  ol 
his  ships,  with  an  hundred  and  twenty  souls,  was  swallowed  up. 
The  shores  of  Spain  were  strewed  with  articles  thrown  overboard 
by  the  rest;  and  the  sovereigns,  in  anguish  at  the  supposed  loss  of 
the  expedition,  shut  themselves  up  for  many  days,  incapable  of  con- 
solation. But  the  remainder  of  the  fleet,  reassembling  at  the  Cana- 
ries, held  on  their  course,  and  in  the  month  of  April,  arrived  at 
St  Domingo. 

The  restless  spirit  of  Columbus,  defrauded,  for  a  time,  of  its  con- 
genial career,  endeavoured  vainly  to  engage  his  patrons  in  a  crusade 
for  the  rescue  of  the  Uoly  Sepulchre;  and  failing  in  this,  turned  to  a 
scheme  more  honourable,  useful,  and  suitable  to  his  genius — a  scheme 
for  fresh  and  brilliant  discovery.  The  Portuguese,  after  many 
futile  attempts,  had  at  last  succeeded  in  reaching  India,  by  doubling 
Africa,  and  the  value  and  importance  of  the  newly-opened  channel 
of  trale,  excited  emulation  in  all  rival  maritime  nations.  The  admi- 
ral by  this  time,  had  come  to  the  conclusion,  that  South  America 
was  a  main-land  by  iiself,  lying  oil'  the  shores  of  Asia,  much  in  the 
same  manner  iis  the  insular  continent  of  Australia  does  in  realitv. 
Cuba  he  still  firmly  held  to  be  a  portion  of  the  great  Eastern  Con- 
tinent; and  the  impetuous  current  which  flows  between  them,  could 
issue,  he  considered,  from  no  other  source  than  the  Indian  Sea,  which 
discharged  its  wators  into  the  Atlantic  by  a  strait  somewhere  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  what  is  now  known  as  the  isthmus  of  Darien. 
This  strait,  opening,  as  he  sup])Osed,  a  direct  communication  with 
the  golden  shores  of  the  Orient,  he  proposed  to  discover  and  explore ; 
and  the  sovereigns,  the  precedent  for  infringing  his  grants  now  fully 
established,  willingly  lent  their  countenance  to  a  project  lor  exteul- 
ing  their  dominions  and  increasing  their  wealth,  conducted  by  a  n)an 
whom  experience  had  shown  them  to  be,  of  all  others,  most  fltleil 
to  the  undertaking.  He  was  accordingly  permitted  to  fit  o.it  an 
expedition,  and  take  with  him  his  son  Fernando  and  his  brother 
Bartholomew;  and  interpreter,  learned  in  Arabic,  were  provided  to 
assist  in  hii  expected  negotiations  wiih  the  Khan.  But  the  intrigues 
of  his  enemies,  and  especially  of  Fonscca,  as  usual,  greatly  retarded 
his  pre])arations;  and  it  was  not  until  the  9th  of  May,  1502,  that,  at 
the  ageof  .'■ixty-six,  with  a  frame  broken  by  hardship  and  expcjsure, 
and  a  mirul  depressed  by  ingratitude  and  persecution,  h'-  set  sail  from 
Cadiz,  on  the  last  of  his  voy.iges  of  disco.ery. 

Four  small  caravels  and  an  hundred  and  fifty  men  comi-osed  hid 


TUE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


O 


command.  On  tlie  25th  lie  left  the  Canaries,  and  after  touching  at 
the  Caribbee  islands,  arrived  at  St.  Domingo,  where  he  trusted  to 
replace  one  of  his  vessels,  which  was  nearly  unfit  for  use.  But  the 
jealous  Ovando,  dreading  his  presence,  and  fulfilling  the  selfish  com- 
mands of  the  sovereigns,  ordered  him  out  of  the  harbour.  On  this, 
Columbus,  whose  maritime  experience  foretold  the  approach  of  a 
hurricane,  entreated  the  governor  at  least  to  delay  the  sailing  of  the 
fleet,  which  was  ready  to  return  to  Spain.  His  warning  was  unheeded, 
and  he  hastened  to  take  refuge  in  some  lonely  harbour  of  the  coast. 
The  fleet  sailed,  and  a  fearful  tempest  arose,  in  which  many  of  the 
veasels  were  lost,  including  the  principal  ship,  in  which  were  Roldan 
and  Bobadilla,  with  the  captive  Guarionex,  and  a  great  amount  of 
treasure,  extorted  from  the  sufferings  of  the  Indians.  Only  one  ves- 
sel was  able  to  continue  the  voyage  to  Spain. 

Narrowly  escaping  shipwreck,  the  admiral,  in  July,  resumed  his 
voyage  in  search  of  the  supposed  strait,  and  steering  south-west,  ou 
the  30th  of  tiiat  month  discovered  the  small  ialand  of  Guanaja,  near 
the  coast  of  Uonduras.  Here  he  fell  in  with  an  immense  canoe, 
which  had  probably  come  from  Yucatan,  filled  with  Indians,  who 
had  many  ingenious  utensils  of  copper,  &c.,  and  who  indicated  to  him 
a  route,  which,  if  followed,  would  soon  have  led  him  to  the  wealthy 
provinces  lying  westward  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexit  Eager,  however, 
to  discover  the  supposed  strait,  he  passed  over  to  the  continent,  and 
do;i]jling  Cape  Honduras,  stood  eastward  along  the  coast,  receiving 
from  the  natives  much  kindness  and  hospitality.  For  forty  days  a 
succession  of  storms  and  head-winds  retarded  the  squadron,  slowly 
struggling  to  the  east,  and  it  was  not  until  the  14th  of  September 
that  it  rounded  Cape  Gracias  a  Dios  (so  named  in  gratituc'e  for  tha 
final  success  of  the  altemjt)  and  stood  southward  along  the  Mus- 
quito  coast. 

Along  this  coast  the  admiral  I'ept  for  sixty  leagues,  lowing,  by  the 
conflict  of  stream  and  tide,  a  boals'  crew  in  what  he  called  "The 
Kiver  of  Disaster,"  and  on  the  25(]i  0^  September,  anchored  his  little 
fleet,  .'shattered  by  lonipests,  in  a  convc'iient  harbour,  between  an 
island  and  the  mainland.  A  friendly  intercourse  with  the  Indians 
at  this  place  was  interrupted  by  the  superstition  of  both  parties — 
the  natives  supposing  that  a  notary  public,  who  was  ordered  to  take 
down  their  replies,  was  a  magician  weaving  a  spell  against  tliem; 
wliiic  a  fragrant  powder  which  they  burned  to  dispel  tlie  supposed 
baaeiul  efl'cot  of  his  incantations  alarmed  the  Suaniards  iu  turn,  who 


i  VXM 


r-rt  THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 

supposed  themselves  bewitched,  and  attributed  all  their  ill  luck  and 
the  storms  thej  had  encountered  to  some  Indian  enchantment.  Co- 
lumbus, in  his  dispatches,  describes  the  people  of  this  place  (Cariari) 
as  great  enchanters,  and  particularly  states  that  two  girls,  who  came 
aboard  his  ship,  had  a  magic  powder  concealed  about  their  persons. 
This  strange  bit  of  prejudice  was  not  confined  to  the  age  or  the  nation 
of  r'olumbus  and  his  people.  A  century  later,  we  find  honest  John 
Davis,  voyaging  among  the  Esquimaux,  thanking  God  that  no  harm 
hud  come  of  their  diabolical  spells ;  and  later  still,  a  similar  appre- 
hension prevailed  among  the  settlers  of  New  England. 

Following  the  shore  of  Costa  Rica,  early  in  October,  Columbus 
anchored  in  the  great  bay  of  Carnabaco,  which  he  entered  by  a 
channel  still  called  "Boca  del  Almirante,"  (Mouth  of  the  Admiral). 
Abundance  oi'  gold,  much  of  it  in  large  plates,  was  found  among 
the  natives,  and  was  readily  yielded  by  them  in  exchange  for  Eu- 
ropean trifles.  His  people  would  gladly  have  remained  to  pursue 
this  lucrative  tralTic,  but  the  commander,  intent  on  his  projected  dis- 
covery, kept  on,  sailing  along  the  coast  of  Veragua,  and  finding  gold 
j)lciififul,  wherever  he  landed.  Encouraged  by  the  delusive  and 
misunderstood  reports  of  the  Indians,  he  now  fancied  that  he  was 
on  the  long-eluding  track  to  Asian  civilization.  A  kingdom  to  the 
westward  which  they  described  in  glowing  terms,  was  probably  the 
distant  empire  of  Peru;  but  Columbus,  who,  for  a  man  so  practical, 
had  certainly  the  i^rcatest  imagination  of  his  time,  understood  them 
as  specifying  fleets,  cavalry,  and  artillery,  and  confirming  his  faith 
in  tlii>  vicinity  of  the  Ganges  and  the  everlasting  Khan.  On  the  2d 
of  Xuvcnilicr,  he  came  to  anchor  in  that  beautiful  harbour  on  which 
he  bestowed  tiie  name  of  Porto  Ik'llo.  Soon  after,  he  made  Cape 
Nombro  de  Dios,  where  adverse  winds  and  tempestuous  weather 
again  forbade  his  advance.  The  crews  were  worn  out  with  contendini? 
against  continual  storms,  and  the  ships  were  so  leaky,  fn^m  the  rav- 
ages of  worms,  that  it  seemed  impossible  to  ke<>p  them  afloat  much 
longer.  IIo  felt  compelled  dierefore,  for  the  time,  to  relinquish  the 
hope  of  eflfecting  that  grand  discovery  which  should  revive  his  fame 
and  throw  a  halo  around  his  old  age  and  declining  fortunes.  The 
prows  were  turned  for  the  golden  shores  of  Veragua,  and  thus,  in 
the  elegant  language  of  Mr.  Irving,  "ended  the  lofty  anticijiations 
vvhieh  had  elevated  Columbus  aliove  all  personal  interests;  wliich 
had  made  him  regardless  of  hanlshij^s  an<l  perils;  and  had  given  a 
lieroic!  charieter  to  the  early  part  of  his  voyage.     It  is  true  he  }ia<i 


been  i 
splendi 
pointe( 
Darien, 
she  apj 
in  vain 


TUE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMERICA. 


77 


been  in  pursuit  of  a  mere  cbimera,  but  it  was  tbe  chimera  of  a 
splendid  imagination  and  a  penetrating  judgment.  If  be  was  disap- 
pointed in  bis  expectation  of  finding  a  strait  tbrougb  tbe  isthmus  of 
Darien,  it  was  because  nature  herself  had  been  disappointed;  for 
she  appears  to  have  attempted  to  make  one,  but  to  have  attempted 


in  vam. 


UiLitiniXXiDiU      X   JL  m 

DISASTROUS  ATTEMPT  TO  FOUND  A  SETTLEMENT,  —  HOSTILITIES 

WITH  THE  INDIANS. — THE  VESSELS  FINALLY  STRANDED  ON 

THE  ISLAND  OF  J  AM  AIC  A.— EXTRAORDINARY  DEVICE  OF 

COLUMBUS.  —  MUTINY  OF  HIS  FOLLOWERS.  —  TREACHERY 

OF  OVANDO.  —  RESCUE  OF  THE  CREWS.  —  ATROCTIIES 

COMMITTED  ON  THE  NATIVES  OF  HAYTI,  —  RETURN 

OF   COLUMBUS  TO  SPAIN.  —  HIS  TREATMENT. — 

HIS  DEATH.  —  DISPOSAL  OF  HIS  REMAINS. 

Involved  in  fresh  tempests,  the  sea-worn  squadron  laboured  back, 
and  in  January,  1503,  arrived  near  the  river  of  Veragua.  Much 
gold  was  collected  from  the  natives,  and'  Bartholomew,  with  sixty- 
eight  men,  explored  the  country,  which  he  reported  to  be  rich  in 
the  precious  metal.  In  this  inviting  region,  wliich  he  supposed  to 
be  the  Aurea  Chersonesus  of  the  ancients,  Columbus  resolved  to 
found  a  settlement.  The  erection  of  a  fortress  and  of  dwellings  was 
commenced  v/ith  much  energy,  and  eighty  of  the  company  wore 
selected  as  colonista.  This  promising  scliemi',  however,  by  the 
enmity  of  the  natives,  was  presently  disconcerted,  with  much  loss 
and  embarrassment. 

Quibia,  the  cacique  of  the  country,  a  brave,  fierce,  and  powerful 
chieflain,  had  at  first  treated  tlie  intruders  with  civility,  expei^ing 
their  speedy  departure.  But  on  seeing  these  preparations  for  a  per- 
manent establishment  in  his  territories,  he  resorted  to  hosti]iiie.s,  and, 
though  once  captured  and  twice  defeated,  succeeded  in  'Iciliing  ten 
cf  the  Spaniards,  and  holding  the  remainder  of  the  st'ttkinent,  for 
nine  days,  in  a  state  of  alarming  siege  and  distres.s-- the  tempfstuou.s 
weather,  during  that  time,  preventing  the  admiral  from  landing  with 


m 

•i 


73 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


k 


ri'inrorccmcnts.  Tlie  remainder  of  the  colony,  with  miicli  danger 
and  difficulty,  was  finally  recmbarkcd,  and  Columbus,  leaving  one 
of  his  caravels  rotting  in  the  river,  put  to  sea  with  the  others,  and 
made  his  way  to  Porto  Bello,  There  another,  riddled  by  the  worm.-s, 
was  abandoned,  and  with  the  crews  crowded  into  the  two  remaining 
vessels,  now  little  letter  than  wrecks,  ho  sloercu  for  Ilispaniola. 
Af\er  long  tossing  about  in  renewed  tempests,  finding  that  the}'-  could 
not  be  kept  afloat  much  longer,  he  ran  for  the  nearest  land,  and  on 
the  24th  of  June  made  a  harbour  of  Jamaica,  still  called  "Don  Chris- 
tojiher's  Cove."  lie  ran  the  vessels  aground,  and  they  soon  filled 
with  water  to  the  decks.  Houses  were  built  ujton  them  as  a  shelter 
for  the  crcwf:  ,i!id  a  defence  against  attack,  and  the  neighbouring 
caeitpies  were  induced  to  promise  a  regular  supply  of  provisions. 

To  escape,  indeed,  from  this  solitary  isle  of  the  sea,  lying  far  from 
the  traik  even  of  the  few  and  unfrequcnt  voA'agcs  to  Ilispaniola, 
seemed  a  ost  an  hopeless  undertaking.  But  one  Diego  ^fendez,  a 
notary,  .  by  his  courage  and  policy,  had  already  rendered  the 
most  important  "^c/vices  to  the  expedition,  now  volunteered  on  the 
desperate  enleip;ise  of  gainir.g  the  port  of  St.  Domingo.  In  an 
Indian  canoe,  manned  by  si.\  natives,  he  boldly  set  forth,  to  crates 
forty  leagues  of  ."sea,  perilous  from  furious  currents;  and  although, 
coasting  along  the  shore,  he  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  Indians,  con- 
trived to  eflVct  his  escape,  regained  the  ships,  and  with  one  Fiesc(\ 
a  Genoese,  with  two  canoes,  again  set  forth  on  his  adventurous 
undertaking.  In  a  letter,  which,  by  this  precarious  conveyance, 
Columbus  di.^patched  to  the  sovereigns,  he  enthusiastically  proflered 
his  .services  as  a  mi.ssionary  in  converting  the  Grand  Khan,  whom, 
in  his  next  voyage,  he  confidently  expected  to  find — then,  by  a  sud- 
den revulsion  of  fi-eling,  awaking  to  the  forlorn  reality  of  his  con- 
dition, he  exclaim.<5,  "Until  now,  I  have  wept  for  others;  have  j)ity 
upon  me,  Heaven,  iuid  weej)  for  me,  earth  !  In  my  temporal  concerns, 
without  a  farthing  to  give  in  ofl'ering;  in  spiritual  concerns,  cast 
away  here  in  the  Indies;  isolated  in  my  mi.sery,  infirm,  expecting 
each  day  will  be  my  la.st;  surrounded  by  cruel  savages,  sejiarnted 
from  the  holy  sacraments  of  the  church,  so  that  my  soul  will  be  lu.st, 
if  sepsrated  here  from  my  body,  *  *  If  it  should  please 
God  to  delfver  me  from  hence,  I  humbly  sup|)li(rate  your  maje.stics 
to  permit  me  to  re|)air  to  Rome,  and  perforin  other  pilgrimages." 

Many  months  j)as.«cd  by,  and  no  succour  came,  nor  any  tidings 
of  tlio  fate  of  his  dauntles.^'  mcs.sen<jrers.     A  mutinv,  headed  bv  one 


•iHl 


THE  SPANIARDS   IN   AMERICA. 


79 


Francisco  Porras,  sprung  up,  wliicli  the  admiral,  enfeebled  by  old 
age,  and  crippled  by  the  gout,  was  unable  to  suppress.  In  January, 
1504,  the  malcontents,  forty-eight  in  number,  seized  canoes,  and  put 
to  sea;  but  a  storm  coming  up,  put  back  to  Jamaica,  having  mur- 
dered eighteen  Indians  whom  they  had  taken  as  rowers,  by  driving 
them  overboard.  They  then  commenced  a  system  of  plunder  and 
depredation  among  the  native  villages. 

The  Jamaicans,  provoked  at  these  outrages,  and,  by  degrees,  sati- 
ated with  European  traffic,  now  discontinued  their  supplies,  and  the 
large  body  of  men  still  under  command  of  Columbus  was  threatened 
with  the  horrors  of  starvation.  The  cunning  genius  of  their  leader, 
by  a  most  subtle  device,  rescued  them  from  the  anticipated  evil. 
Knowing,  from  his  observations,  that  an  eclipse  of  the  moon  would 
speedily  occur,  he  announced  to  the  caciques,  in  a  grand  council,  that 
the  God  of  the  Spaniards,  enraged  at  the  ill-treatment  of  his  worship- 
pers, intended  to  visit  tlieir  island  with  pestilence — in  token  whereof, 
tlic  moon,  that  very  night,  would  grow  dim,  and  leave  her  place  in 
the  heavens.  At  first  tliey  scofted  at  the  ominous  intelligence,  but 
as  night  drew  on,  watched  with  some  anxiety  for  tlie  predicted  event. 
lUit  when  they  perceived  its  actual  occurrence,  the  whole  multitude 
was  seized  with  frantic  and  uncontrolhiblc  terror.  The  island  re- 
souTulcd  with  howling  tind  lamentation,  and  the  chiefs,  promising 
readv  obedience  for  tlic  future,  besouirlit  the  dreaded  stranger  to 
intercede  witli  his  God  in  their  behalf.  Accordinglv,  he  retired  to 
liis  cabin,  and  reappearing,  after  a  decent  interval,  informed  them 
that  his  suit  was  granted,  and  that  the  moon  would  presently  be 
restored  to  her  place  in  the  heavens.  Her  rOa])pearance  was  hailed 
with  extravagant  joy  by  the  natives,  who  thenceforward  supplied 
their  visitors  with  an  abundance  of  provisions. 

Plight  months  having  elap.sed  since  the  departure  of  Mendez  and 
Ficseo,  it  was  supposed,  of  course,  that  their  slender  barks  had  been 
swallowed  up  in  the  ocean.  They  liad  nevertheless  succeeded,  and 
after  a  voyage  of  fearful  suffering,  in  which  several  of  their  Indians 
had  died  of  thirst  and  fatigue,  had  gained  the  port  of  St.  Domingo, 
l^ut  Ovando,  one  of  the  meanest,  crudest,  and  most  unprincipled 
wretclies  tliat  ever  played  the  tyrant  in  a  remote  province,  hoping 
that  the  great  admiral,  to  whom  the  succession  of  liis  office  hud  beea 
j)romised,  might  perisli  obscurely  among  the  savages,  put  off,  under 
Irivolons  pretexts,  the  sending  of  relief,  and  even  had  the  basenes.s 
ti>  iirohibit  Mendez  from  going,  in  person,  to  the  assistance  of  hs 


80 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  njSTOKY. 


shipwrecked  companions.  At  length  (perhaps  to  satisfy  himself  that 
Columbus  was  dead)  he  sent  a  small  vessel,  which,  after  a  brief  stop- 
2)agc,  returned  without  taking  a  single  man  from  the  wrecks. 

Tlie  rebels  ashore,  headed  by  Porras,  now  resolved  on  plundering 
the  vessels  and  seizing  the  person  of  their  commander,  but  Don  Bar- 
tholomew, wiih  fifty  men,  equal  to  the  number  of  the  hostile  faction, 
met  them  on  the  road,  and  routed  them,  seizing  Porras,  and  killing 
several  with  his  own  hand.  The  defeated  faction,  with  the  most 
abject  servility,  now  submitted,  and  took  oath  of  allegiance  on  a 
cross  and  a  missal,  imprecating  terrible  penalties  on  their  heads  in 
case  of  any  future  misconduct — "that  they  might  die  without  con- 
fession or  absolution  from  the  pope,  or  from  any  cardinal,  archbishop, 
bishop,  or  any  manner  of  priest;  that  they  should  be  deprived  of 
the  holy  sacraments;  that  their  bodies  should  be  cast  into  the  fields 
as  renegades  and  heretics ;  and,  to  make  all  sure,  that  they  should 
take  no  benefit  at  their  death  from  any  bulls  and  indulgences." 

It  Wiis  not  until  a  year  after  the  shipwreck  that  the  faithful  Men- 
dez  could  obtain  permission  to  sail  to  the  rescue  of  Wis  suffering  com- 
mander and  shipmates.  On  the  28tli  of  June,  1504,  they  embarked 
in  two  vessels,  and,  aft^-r  a  weary  voyage  of  two  months,  reached  St. 
Domingo,  where  the  people,  their  prejudices  abated,  welcomed  the 
great  admiral  with  enthusia.suc  rejoicing.  The  base  Ovando  al.'^o 
paid  many  hypocritical  atlontions  to  the  commander  whom  he  had 
so  lately  injured  and  left  to  perish. 

The  administration  of  this  man,  during  the  brief  interval  since 
his  appointment,  had  been  marked  by  scenes  hardly  surpas.sed  in 
horror  and  infamy  by  any  even  in  the  history  of  Spanish  colonization. 
Misfurluiic  attended  its  conimencement  in  the  death  of  more  than  a 
thousand  ui'  the  eager  adventurers  whom  he  had  brought  over,  and 
who,  in  their  in.saiie  thirst  for  gold,  exposed  tliemsjjlves  recklessly 
to  di.*iea.se  and  famine.  The  Indians  were  held  m  the  most  intolera- 
ble slavery,  and  vast  numbers  j>erislied  under  the  tyranny  of  their 
new  task-niast«;r.>»,  rapacious  of  sutlden  wealth.  On  the  vague  re{)ort 
of  a  niediUit*'<l  conspiracy  in  Xaragua,  the  govert)or  man;lii\l  there 
with  an  army,  and  was  received  by  the  queen,  Anacaotni,  the  ancient 
friend  of  the  whites,  and  by  her  caciqut^s,  with  the  utmost  confiiW'nce 
and  hospitiility.  For  several  days  the  crafty  Spaniard,  enjoying  the 
games  and  other  exhibitions  provided  for  his  amusement,  disseu»bled 
his  bloody  jturpose;  then,  without  a  word  of  warning,  he  lot  Um)sl' 
un  the  umirmed  mukituUc  his  krociuua  soldiery,  which  committed 


a  horrib 
forty  cae 
alive  by 
province 
itants  w( 

Fresh 
tic  chiefl 
native  su 
desperate 
resolutio 
numbeis 
ments. 
Columbu 
since  I  1 
dead;  all 
others  bj 
greater  p 
had  fied, 
them."     : 
quities,  w 
tion;    an( 
promise  I 
the  troub 

Coin  ml 
not  witln; 
been  the 
exhaustfi 
he  alwavt 
pesiuous 
l.ucar.  ' 
to  Sevilli 
passed,  w 
to  touch 
actual  po' 
"  Little  h 
such  t<jil> 
If  Idesir 
incest  tun( 
bella,  soo 
and  left  I 


THE   SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


81 


u  horrible  massacre.  The  queen  was  hanged  by  his  command,  and 
forty  caciques,  after  enduring  the  most  cruel  tortures,  were  burned 
alive  by  firing  the  palace  in  which  they  were  confine '.,  The  whole 
province  was  ravaged  with  fire  and  sword,  and  the  surviving  inhab- 
itants were  reduced  to  the  most  wretcho  ^    'avery. 

Fresh  cruelties  soon  provoked  a  war  with  Gotubanama,  the  gigan- 
tic chieftain  of  Higuey,  a  mountainous  province,  which,  of  all  the 
native  si^vereignties,  alone  remained  unenslaved.  After  a  long  and 
desperate  contest,  in  which  the  brave  cacique  exhibited  a  most  kingly 
resolution  and  magnanimity,  he  was  taken  and  executed,  and  great 
numbers  of  his  people  were  put  to  death  with  the  most  cruel  tor- 
ments. The  whole  native  race  was  now  enslaved  or  exterminated, 
Columbus,  on  his  arrival,  wrote  to  the  court,  "I  am  informed  that 
since  I  left  this  island,  six  parts  out  of  seven  of  the  natives  are 
dead;  all  through  ill-treatment  and  inhumanity ;  some  by  the  sword, 
otliers  by  blows  and  cruel  usage,  others  through  hunger.  The 
greater  part  have  perished  in  the  mountains  and  glens,  whither  they 
had  fled,  from  not  being  able  to  support  the  labor  imposed  upon 
them."  But  the  ample  remittances  of  gold,  the  price  of  these  ini- 
quities, were,  with  Ferdinand,  an  ample  apology  for  their  perpetra- 
tion; and  though  iiis  consort,  with  her  dying  breath,  gained  his 
promise  that  Ovando  should  be  displaced,  he  never  gave  hims».ir 
the  trouble  to  fulfil  it. 

Columbus,  without  power  to  repress  these  enormities,  atid  perhaps 
not  without  remorse  ut  the  fruits  of  that  enslavcMnent  which  he  h;iil 
been  the  first  to  practieo,  hastened  his  departure.  With  all  his  funds 
exhauatod  in  providing  fur  his  crews,  (for  whoso  rights  and  .-elfuro 
he  always  had  especial  care,)  he  embaiked  for  Spain,  and  aftv.i-  ^  tem- 
pestuous passage  of  two  months,  in  November,  1504,  arrived  at  San 
Luear.  Theiice,  enfeebled  by  old  age  and  infirmities,  he  was  borne 
to  Seville,  where  tin-  few  remaining  days  of  his  life  were  mostly 
passed,  while  vainly  attempting,  by  the  intervention  of  his  friends, 
to  touch  the  honour  or  justie-o  of  the  court.  lie  was  reduced  to 
actual  poverty,  as  appears  by  an  affecting  passage  in  a  letter  to  his  son. 
"  Little  have  I  profited,"  he  writes,  "by  twenty  years  of  service,  with 
such  toils  and  perils,  since  at  present  I  do  not  own  a  roof  in  Spain. 
If  1  di-sire  to  eat  or  sleep,  I  have  no  resort  but  an  inn,  and  for  the 
most  tunes,  have  not  wherewithal  to  pay  the  bill."  The  death  >f  Isa- 
helI!^  soon  after  his  arrival,  defeated  his  last  hope  of  obt^iining  justice, 
and  left  him  dependent  on  the  ingratitude  of  the  selfish  Ferdinand. 
Vol.  III.— 6 


m 


*^] 


ft- 

W!^\ 

i           1 

mm 

'\-  1 

n..  ? 

W^ 

,  i'.;; 

*Ji| 

.I'li 

m 

M 

go  THE   I'EurLE'S    DOOK    OF   yiSTOUY. 

By  ^^av,  1605,  he  wns  enabled  to  travel  to  court,  whore  that  false- 
licurtcd  priiK'o,  a.s  usual,  reccivod  him  with  many  shallow  coiniilinicnts 
nntl  unmeaning  professions,  but  stuili'in  !«  .-vaded  the  fulfilment  of 


his  promises,  knowing  that  death  would  soon  rid  mm  ot  an  applicant 
whoso  claims  could  neither  be  conveniently  granted  nor  decently 
denied.  The  aged  admiral  felt  his  end  approaching,  but  still  besought 
the  king  so  far  to  fulfil  his  agreements  as  to  appoint  Diego  to  the 
command  which  he  would  speedily,  by  solemn  contract  with  the 
crown,  inherit.  "This,"  he  said,  "is  a  matter  which  touches  my 
honour.  As  to  the  rest,  do  as  your  majesty  thinks  jiropcr;  give  or 
witiiliold,  as  may  be  most  for  your  interest,  and  I  shall  be  content." 
liut  all  was  in  vain ;  and  with  calm  severity  he  writes  from  his  death- 
bed— "It  appears  that  his  majesty  does  not  think  fit  to  fulfil  that 
which  he  has  promi.sed  me  by  word  and  seal,  with  the  queen  who 
is  now  in  glory.  For  me  to  contend  for  the  contrary  would  be  to 
contend  with  the  wind.  I  have  done  all  that  I  could  do.  I  leave 
the  rest  to  God,  whom  I  have  ever  found  propitious  to  me  in  my 
necessities."  lie  made  his  will,  providing,  with  strict  equity,  for  all 
claims  on  his  justice  or  benevolence;  and  liaving  received  tho.se 
eoiKsolations  of  the  church  which  he  valued  .so  highly,  murmured, 
"Into  thy  hands,  oh  Lortl,  I  commend  my  spirit,"  and  e.\i)iied  with 
gnat  trantpiillity,  on  the  20th  of  May,  1500,  being  about  seventy 
years  of  age. 

The  remains  of  the  great  admii'r*!  !ki\  e  been  destined  to  an  extra- 
ordinary pilgrimage.  Tlu'y  V  ,■;«'  fir.-;  deposited  in  the  convent  of 
Fraiiei.scans  at  Valladolid,  and  8cv'*n  years  afterwards  in  that  of  the 
Carthusians  at  Seville.  lu  1536,  with  those  of  his  son  Diego,  they 
were  transported  to  the  New  World,  and  were  appropriately  en- 
.shrined  in  the  Cathedral  of  St  Domingo,  in  the  island  of  Ilispaniola, 
always  the  most  favourite  region  of  his  aflections.  "Kven  here, 
tlu'.se  precious  relics,  condemned  to  wander  like  their  illustrious  ten- 
ant, were  not  suffered  to  find  their  final  resting  j)laee."  For  two 
hundred  and  sixty  years  they  reposed  in  this  cathedral,  but  in  1795, 
on  the  cession  of  that  island  to  the  French,  with  the  most  solemn 
and  impressive  ceremonie.«,  were  once  more  disinterred  and  conveyed 
to  Havana  in  the  island  of  Cuba,  There  they  were  received  with 
all  the  di.stinction  wliich  oflieial,  military,  and  ecclesiastical  jiornp 
could  confer,  and  were  deposited  with  great  ceremony  in  the  wall 
•  •f  the  cathedral,  at  the  right  of  the  grand  altar,  where,  the  object  of 
iK'cj)  and  reverential  interest,  th<'y  still  remaitu 


THE   SPANIARDS  IN   AMERICA.  83 

DISCOVERY  AND  SURVEY  OP  CUBA.  —  ITS  CONQUEST  BY  VELAS- 
QUEZ.  MEMORABLE  SPEECH  OP  AN  INHIAN. —  POUNDAil  iN 

OP   HAVANA,   ETC. — CONQUEST  OP    PORTO   RICO    BY  Po     CE 

DE  LEON. — SINGULAR  EXPERIMENT  OP   A   CACIQUB. — 

ITS  SUBJUGATION.  —  DISCOVERY  OP  JAMaK\.—   '  T8 

HUMANE  CONQUEST  BY  JUAN  DE  ESQUIVET     — 

SEQUENT  CRUELTIES  OP  THE  SPANIARD,^      - 

ACCOUNT  OP  AMEH1CU8  VE8PUCIU8, 

It  has  been  already  mentioned  that  the  island  of  Cuba,  di  .  ed 

by  Columbus  on  his  memorable  first  voyage,  was  regarded  by  him 
and  by  most  of  his  contctnporaries  as  a  portion  of  the  continent  of 
Asia.  Tn  /14ni,  and  again,  in  his  last  voyage  of  1502,  he  made 
extensive  surveys  of  its  cofist.<<,  but,  by  a  singular  fatality,  only  con- 
firmed his  original  opinion.  No  further  exploration  was  made  until 
the  year  1508,  when  Nicolas  Ovando,  then  governor  of  ITispaniola, 
obeying  an  order  of  the  vonrt,  dispatched  Sebastian  Ocampo  on  a 
voyage  of  survey.  That  commander  circumnavigated  the  supposed 
continent,  jiroving  it  an  island,  and  made  considerable  exploration, 
ropniring  his  vessels  in  the  l^'nutiful  harbour  of  Havana,  which  ho 
first  discovered,  (naming  it  Puerto  de  Carcnas,)  the  convenience  of 
which,  with  other  natural  advantages  of  the  island,  he  extolled  in 
strong  terms,  recommending  immediate  colonization. 

Nothing  more  was  done,  however,  until  the  year  1511,  when 
Diogo  Columbus  (son  of  the  admiral),  who  had  succeeded  in  sup- 
planting Ovando  in  the  rule  of  Ili.^paniola,  prepared  an  expedition 
of  three  hundred  men,  under  cominand  of  Diego  Velasquez,  for  the 
conquest  and  colonization  of  the  island.  That  officer  disembarked 
at  the  harbour  of  Palmas,  not  without  resi.stance  from  the  natives, 
headed  by  Ilatuey,  a  cacique  of  Ilayti,  who,  on  the  subjugation  of 
that  island,  had  taken  refuge  in  Cuba.  Rut  his  forces,  weak  and 
unwarlike,  were  easily  defeated,  and  the  unfortunate  chief,  being 
captured,  was  sentenced  by  his  ferocious  conqueror  to  be  burned 
alive.  Being  urged  as  usual,  at  the  stake,  to  embrace  Christianity, 
and  secure  the  joys  of  heaven,  he  inquired  if  any  Spaniards  would 
l)e  there;  and  being  told  that  there  would,  made  the  cver-memoraMi! 


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Corporation 


23  WeST  MAIN  STAKT 

WIBSTiR.N  Y.  MSBO 

(716)  873<.^0^ 


8i 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HI8T0KY. 


answer,  "  I  will  not  be  a  Christian  then ;  for  I  would  not  go  again  to 
a  place  where  I  must  find  men  so  cruel." 

Thanks,  however,  to  the  good  offices  of  Las  Casns,  the  generous 
advocate  of  an  oppressed  race,  who  accompanied  the  forces,  the  con- 
quest of  Cuba  was  disgraced  by  comparatively  few  of  these  atrocities. 
Indeed,  the  gentle  and  un warlike  character  of  the  natives  induced 
them  to  submit,  with  very  little  resistance,  to  the  a.ssumed  authority 
of  the  strangers,  and  to  embrace  the  proffered  .eligion  with  greater 
readiness  than  any  others  of  their  race.  The  town  of  Baracoa  was 
first  founded  by  the  invaders,  and  by  1514,  th.^  whole  island  had 
been  overrun  and  examined  by  the  increasing  numbers  of  emigrants. 
The  towns  of  Santiago  and  Trinidad,  on  the  southern  shore,  were 
founded,  and  those  of  Bayamo,  Puerto  Principe,  and  Santi-Espiritus, 
near  the  centre.  Batabano,  in  the  south,  founded  in  July,  1515,  at 
first,  in  honour  of  the  illustrious  discoverer,  received  the  name  of 
San  Cristoval  de  la  Havana — a  name,  however,  transferred,  in  1519, 
to  the  capital  at  present  known  under  the  last  portion  of  the  appel- 
lation. The  advantages  of  this  splendid  site  appear  to  have  been 
first  duly  appreciated  by  Hernando  de  Soto,  governor  in  1538,  who 
erected  a  fortress,  still  standing,  and  otherwise  improved  the  Havana, 
just  before  his  memorable  and  fatal  expedition  to  Florida.  So  .ap- 
idly  did  it  increase  in  importance,  that  ten  years  afterwards,  it  was 
adopted  as  a  residence  by  the  governors,  and  in  1589,  was  .formally 
constituted  by  the  crown  as  the  capital  of  the  island. 

The  beautiful  island  of  Porto  Rico  (called  Boriquen  by  the  native 
inhabitants)  was,  like  all  the  most  important  of  the  Antilles,  discov- 
ered by  Columbus,  on  his  second  voyage,  in  November,  1493.  The 
natives  were  an  ingenious  and  industrious  people,  living  in  greater 
comfort  and  civilization  than  any  which  the  Spaniards  had  yet 
encountered. 

On  the  subjugation  of  Hispaniola,  Juan  Ponce  de  Leon,  a  soldier 
experienced  in  Moorish  warfare,  and  a  companion  of  Columbus  in 
his  second  expedition,  received  as  the  reward  of  his  activity  in  quell- 
ing the  refractory  natives,  the  government  of  Higuey,  \  province 
lying  directly  opposite  to  the  verdant  mountains  of  Porto  Rico. 
Attracted  by  its  beauty,  and  the  reports  of  its  wealth,  he  made,  in 
1508,  an  expedition  of  reconnoisance;  and  the  following  year,  hav- 
ing obtained  from  the  crown  an  appointment  aa  governor,  made  a 
settlement  there.  Oppression  of  the  natives,  as  usual,  provoked 
their  hostility,  but  a  belief  that  their  invaders,  of  supernatural  ori- 


scisyt:  /.v  vub:  wnsT  iNDiKS 


THE  SPANIARDS  IN  AMERICA. 


85 


gin,  were  invulnerable  and  incapable  of  death,  deterred  them  for  a 
while  from  resistance.  A  certain  cacique,  however,  of  an  inquiring 
and  analytic  turn,  resolved  to  institute  experiments;  and  directed 
his  people,  who  were  charged  to  carry  a  young  Spaniard  across  a 
stream,  to  hold  their  burden  gently  under  water  for  a  considerable 
time.  Doubt  being  laid  by  the  result,  a  general  conspiracy  was 
formed  for  the  destruction  of  the  Spaniards. 

The  latter,  taken  by  surprise,  at  first  sustained  a  complete  defeat. 
All  their  villages  were  destroyed,  an  hundred  of  their  number  were 
slain,  and  the  remainder  were  compelled  to  take  refuge  in  the  fortress 
of  Caparra.  But  Juan  Ponce,  receiving  reinforcements  from  His- 
paniola,  renewed  the  war  with  such  vigour  and  success,  that  the 
whole  island  was  completely  subdued,  and  the  natives  reduced,  as 
in  Hispaniola,  to  a  state  of  complete  slavery  and  to  final  extermina- 
tion. The  singular  subsequent  career  of  the  conqueror,  and  his 
romantic  search  for  the  Fountain  of  Youth,  are  mentioned  in  the 
account  of  the  invasion  of  Florida.       »t#*:i, 

"Jamaica,"  commences  the  grave  historian  of  that  island,*  "had 
the  honour  of  being  discovered  by  Christopher  Columbus,  in  his 
second  expedition  to  the  New  World."  Steering  along  the  southern 
shore  of  Cuba,  that  commander,  informed  of  a  great  island,  lying  in 
the  south,  turned  his  prows  in  that  direction,  and  on  the  5th  of  May, 
1594,  reached  the  shores  of  Jar.>aica.  On  the  return  from  his  last 
disastrous  voyage,  he  was  wrecked  there,  as  we  have  mentioned,  on 
the  2'ith  of  June,  1503,  being  compelled  to  run  his  sinking  ships 
ashore,  in  a  harbour  still  called,  from  the  circumstance,  Don  Chris- 
tophers Cove.  His  miserable  sojourn  in  this  place,  protracted  for  a 
year,  and  his  final  deliverance,  have  been  already  narrated. 

After  the  death  of  Columbus,  his  son  Diego,  unable  to  obtain 
justice  from  the  crown,  instituted  his  memorable  suit  before  the 
council  of  the  Indies  for  the  restitution  of  his  hereditary  dignities 
and  revenues.  An  illustrious  marriage  ^'ivuured  his  purpose,  and 
that  eminent  body,  after  long  and  patient  investigation,  decided 
nearly  every  point  in  his  favour.  Witli  this  righteous  decision  Fer- 
dinand only  partially  complied;  but  Diego,  restored  to  the  govern- 
ment of  Hispaniola,  proceeded  thither,  with  a  splendid  retinue,  in 
July,  1508,  and  entered  on  such  of  his  rights  as  the  injustice  of  the 
king  had  allowed.  But  finding  that  the  island  of  Jamaica,  mani- 
festly within  his  own  jurisdiction,  had  been  granted  by  the  crown 

*  Bryan  Edwards,  Esq. 


86 


THK  FSOPLK'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOBY. 


to  Ojeda  and  Nicuesa  (then  busied  with  their  sohemes  for  the  settle- 
ment of  the  main  land),  he  determined  to  anticipate  their  movements. 

Accordingly,  in  November,  1509,  a  force  of  seventy  men  was  dis- 
patched thither,  under  Juan  de  Esquivel,  a  gallant  cavalier,  and  a 
man  of  humane  and  magnanimous  temperament  To  his  eternal 
honour,  the  occupation  of  the  island  was  disgraced  by  none  of  those 
atrocities  which  have  left  their  indelible  stain  on  the  names  of  nearly 
all  other  early  Spanish  adventurers.  Though  the  island  produced  no 
gold,  a  moderate  and  settled  prosperity  was  the  natural  result.  "  The 
affairs  of  Jamaica,"  says  a  Spanish  historian,  "went  on  prosperously, 
because  Juan  de  Esquivel  having  brought  the  natives  to  submission 
without  any  effusion  of  blood,  they  laboured  in  planting  cotton,  and 
raising  other  commodities  which  yielded  great  profit."  This  humane 
and  honourable  officer,  however,  having  founded  the  town  of  New 
Seville,  and  established  a  flourishing  colony,  died  within  a  few  years 
of  his  appointment 

The  settlement  appears  to  have  increased  with  surprising  rapidity, 
for,  in  1528,  only  thirteen  years  after  the  arrival  of  Esquivel,  Fran> 
cis  de  Garay,  then  holding  the  command,  fitted  out  an  expedition 
of  eight  hundred  and  fifty  men,  many  of  whom  were  cavalry,  for 
the  conquest  of  Panuco,  a  territory  on  the  Gulf,  which,  however, 
Cortes  had  already  secured  to  the  Spanish  crown.  The  customary 
scenes  of  cruelty  and  massacre  followed  hard  on  the  death  of  the 
first  governor,  and  so  rapidly  did  the  work  of  extermination  proceed, 
that  in  little  more  than  half  a  century,  it  is  said,  nearly  the  whole 
native  population,  consisting  of  sixty  thousand,  had  perished.  Many 
caves  in  the  mountains,  still  thickly  covered  with  human  bones,  attest 
the  miserable  end  of  these  unfortunates,  who,  fleeing  from  the  sword 
or  lash  of  the  oppressors,  died  from  hunger  in  those  dismal  recesses. 

Singular  to  state,  the  capital  of  New  Seville,  after  attaining,  in  a 
few  years,  considerable  size  and  importance,  was  abandoned — accord- 
ing to  some  accounts,  by  reason  of  a  destructive  attack  of  the  natives, 
and  to  others,  on  account  of  the  invasion  of  an  innumerable  swarm 
of  ants.  Neither  of  these  legends  ore  probable,  but  it  is  certain  that 
the  ruins  of  extensive  buildings,  some  unfinished,  yet  remain,  and 
that  a  new  capital  city,  St  Jago  de  la  Vega,  or,  as  it  is  now  called, 
Spanish  Town,  was  founded  at  an  early  date  in  the  history  of  the 
country.  The  subsequent  annals  of  the  island  present  compara- 
tively little  of  interest  until  its  capture  by  the  English,  under  tho 
active  administration  of  Cromwell,  in  1655 — an  act  of  hostility 


THE  8PANIABD8  IN  AMEBICA. 


8i 


much  decried  by  some  writers,  but  which  appears  to  have  been  only 
a  reasonable  and  moderate  reprisal  for  numerous  massacres  and 
atrocities  committed  by  the  Spaniards  of  the  West  Indies  on  the 
inhabitants  of  all  neitrhbouring  colonies. 


IGGOONT  OP  AMERIGUS  VESPDCIUS. 

The  renown  of  the  discovery  of  the  Western  Continent,  and  the 
eternal  perpetuation  of  that  renown  by  the  adoption  of  a  name,  were 
certainly  due  to  Christopher  Columbus,  whose  grand  genius  and 
indefatigable  industry  laid  open  the  pathway  to  its  shores.  The  next 
claim,  in  justice,  would  be  that  of  its  first  actual  discoverer,  Sebastian 
Cabot,  who,  through  a  long  life-time  of  enterprise  and  perseverance, 
proved  himself  not  unworthy  of  the  high  honour  which  chance 
accorded  to  his  youth.  But,  singular  to  state,  a  claim  founded  on 
the  most  glaring  imposture,  and  unrelieved  either  by  original  genius 
or  great  achievement,  has  resulted  in  the  eternal  commemoration  of 
a  name  otherwise  long  since  lapsed  into  obscurity — the  name  of 
Amerigo  Vespucci.* 

He  was  bom  at  Florence  on  the  9th  of  March,  1451,  of  noble, 
though  decayed  parentage,  and  received  a  good  education  under  the 
care  of  his  uncle,  an  ecclesiastic.  Benato,  afterwards  king  of  Sicily, 
was  his  fellow-pupil,  and  to  their  subsequent  correspondence,  or  to 
a  fabrication  of  a  portion  thereof,  America  is  indebted  for  its  present 
unsatisfactory  name — a  name  representing  no  heroism  of  soul,  no 
life-long  devotedness  to  a  great  cause — but  bearing  in  its  every  sylla- 
ble the  continual  suggestion  of  fraud,  usurpation  and  inaptitude. 

For  many  years  Vespucci  was  engaged  successfully  in  commerce 
in  his  native  city,  but  finally,  meeting  with  reverses,  was  compelled, 
in  1498,  to  accept  an  agency  in  Spain.  At  Seville  he  became  ac- 
quainted with  Columbus,  and  was  employed  by  the  sovereigns  in 
fitting  out  vessels  for  their  exploring  expeditions.  He  sailed  with 
Alonzo  de  Ojeda  in  his  voyage  of  1499,  infamous  for  treachery  and 
cruelty  committed  on  the  Indians,  and,  with  that  daring  but  unprin- 
cipled commander,  coasted  along,  a  great  extent  of  the  shores  of 
South  America.  The  appearance  of  this  expedition  on  the  coast  of 
Hispaniola,  and  the  uneasiness'  which  it  caused  the  admiral,  have 
been  mentioned. 

*  Latinized  into  Americus  Venpucius. 


t'S^.-v 


88 


TUB  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOBY. 


In  1501,  and  again  in  1503,  the  Florentine  adventurer  sailed  to 
Brazil,  in  the  Portuguese  service ;  and  from  the  interesting  accounts 
which  he  gave  of  the  new  continent,  it  became  fashionable  to  com- 
pliment him  by  giving  it  the  title  of  America.  In  1505,  he  returned 
to  Spain,  and  we  find  him  in  friendly  communication  with  Columbus, 
and  offering  to  use  his  influence  with  the  Spanish  court  in  behalf 
of  the  rights  of  that  injured  commander — proof  almost  positive  that 
no  claim  to  the  discovery  of  America  had  then  been  broached  by 
him  or  by  any  one  in  his  behalf,  lie  received  the  office  of  Grand 
Pilot  of  Spain,  which  he  held  until  his  death  in  1512. 

"By  a  most  extraordinary  piece  of  imposture,  if  committed  by 
himself,  or  of  forgery,  if  committed  by  another,  the  claims  of  Ves- 
pucius  to  the  glory  of  the  discovery  of  the  New  World  have  now, 
for  centuries,  been  seriously  discussed — though,  at  the  present  day, 
few,  except  his  Florentine  countrymen,  will  allow  them  even  the 
merit  of  plausibility,  on  grounds  so  utterly  untenable.  In  a  letter 
which  he  is  said  to  have  written  to  King  Renato,  and  which  was 
published  in  1507,  (only  a  few  months  after  the  death  of  the  great 
admiral)  an  account  is  given  of  a  voyage  which  he  claims  to  have 
made  to  the  coast  of  South  America  in  1497 — a  year  before  the 
memorable  expedition  of  Columbus.  No  assertion  ever  stood  more 
entirely  unsupported.  By  the  unanimous  testimony  of  a  host  of 
witnesses,  it  has  been  proved  that,  except  in  this  letter,  none  of  hia 
contemporaries,  or  of  those  familiar  with  the  Spanish  marine,  had 
ever  heard  of  any  such  voyage.  Ilis  own  conduct  and  the  tenor  of 
his  numerous  remaining  letters  are  all  directly  opposed  to  the  reality 
of  any  such  exploit;  and  at  this  distance  of  time  we  are  unable  to 
decide  whether  the  account  is  a  forgery  of  some  other  person,  or 
whether,  actuated  by  a  miserable  vanity,  he  thought  it  possible,  at 
least  with  his  correspondent,  to  arrogate  t<i  himself  the  discovery  of 
the  continent.  It  is  certainly  more  agreeable  to  suppose  the  former 
than  to  admit  that  a  man  of  the  real  reputation  of  Vespucius,  and  to 
whose  good  character  Columbus  himself  has  borne  testimony,  should 
have  been  capable  of  such  unblushing  impudence  and  falsehood."* 
*  "  Dispovfreru,  tc.,  of  America," 


THE 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  ISTHMUS, 


AND  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  PACIFIC. 


CTI    A    D  T  P  "D     T 
lUiiilirXJuiU     I » 


DISASTROUS    ATTEMPTS    TO    FOUND    A    SETTLEMENT    ON     THE 

ISTHMUS.  —  VASCO  NUNEZ  DE  BALBOA. — THE  SETTLEMENT  OP 

DARIEN. — DEALINGS  WITH  THE  INDIANS. — RUMOURS  OP 

THE  SOUTH  SEA. — EXPEDITION  OP  BALBOA. — CONTESTS 

WITH  THE  INDIANS. — DISCOVERT  OP  THE  PACIPIC. 


The  first  attempts  of  the  Spaniards  to  plant  their  footsteps  on  the 
shores  of  the  American  mainland,  were  attended  with  grievous  suf- 
fering, loss  and  disappointment.  A  small  settlement  named  San 
Sebastian  was  founded  by  Alonzo  de  Ojeda,  in  the  year  1509,  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Gulf  of  Uraba;  but,  despite  the  impetuous  bravery 
of  the  commander  and  the  hardy  endurance  of  his  followers,  the 
implacable  enmity  of  the  surrounding  savages  effected  its  destruction. 
Great  numbers  were  slain,  and  the  survivors  were  compelled  to 
relinquish  the  undertaking.  A  similar  attempt,  under  Diego  de 
Nicuesa,  at  Nombre  de  Dios,  resulted  in  equal  suffering,  mortality 
and  failure.  Despite  these  misfortunes,  or  in  ignorance  of  them, 
eager  adventurers  still  turned  their  prows  to  a  land  which,  more  than 
any  yet  discovered,  was  supposed  to  teem  with  wealth  of  the  precious 
metiils.  The  name  most  memorable  among  these  early  settlers  of 
the  continent,  both  for  brilliancy  of  discovery  and  natural  high 
qualities,  is  that  of  Vasco  Nunez  de  Balboa. 

ilis  early  life,  in  common  with  most  of  the  Spanish  pioneers,  hud 
been  of  a  roving,  unsettled,  and  perhaps  profligate  character.  To 
avoid  arrest  from  his  creditors  in  Hispaniola,  where  he  had  been 
unsuccessfully  engaged  in  planting,  he  contrived  to  be  smuggled  in 
a  rask  on  board  tlie  vessel  of  Martin  Enciso,  who  was  sailing  to  the 
Isthmus  in  search  of  the  colony  of  Ojeda.     After  experitncing  some 


90 


THK  PKOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY. 


misfortunes,  the  adventurers,  under  the  guidance  of  Balboa,  who 
hod  before  explored  the  coast,  made  their  way  to  the  Indian  village 
of  Darien,  on  the  gulf  of  that  name,  where  they  found  much  plunder 
and  established  a  settlement  (1610).  The  active  and  intriguing 
genius  of  Balboa  soon  succeeded  in  wresting  the  chief  command 
from  Enciso;  and  desirous  of  propitiating  the  favour  of  the  crown 
by  remittances  of  gold,  as  usual,  he  dispatched  Francisco  Pizarro, 
afterwards  so  celebrated  for  the  Conquest  of  Peru,  with  a  small  force 
on  a  tour  of  exploration.  This  attempt,  from  native  hostility,  proved 
a  failur  ,  but  accident  soon  showed  the  way  to  profitable  pillage. 

Two  Spanish  refugees,  who  had  been  living  on  the  hospitality  of 
Careto,  a  wealthy  cacique,  were  found  by  the  new  settlers,  and 
treacherously  suggested  an  attack  on  their  late  host.  The  governor, 
accordingly,  with  a  considerable  force,  marched  upon  his  town  and 
plundered  it,  afler  the  unscrupulous  fashion  of  the  age;  but  peace 
was  restored  by  the  marriage  of  the  chief's  daughter  to  the  conqueror, 
and  the  latter  made  a  campaign  against  the  enemies  of  his  father* 
in-law,  from  which  he  also  reaped  a  considerable  booty. 

More  profitable  still  than  these  unprincipled  forays  was  a  pence- 
able  visit  which  he  made  to  the  great  cacique  of  Comagre,  who 
received  him  with  much  honour,  and  whose  son,  a  prince  of  spirit 
and  generosity,  bestowed  on  him  sixty  slaves  and  four  thousand 
ounces  of  gold.  The  royal  share  deducted,  Balboa,  less  anxious  for 
wealth  than  for  renown  and  authority,  commanded  his  followers  to 
divide  the  remainder.  They  wrangled  noisily  around  the  scales,  till 
the  prince,  moved  with  contempt,  struck  the  instrument,  and  scattered 
the  gold  over  the  floor.  "  Why  should  you  quarrel  for  such  a  trifle  ?" 
he  said :  "  Behold  those  loAy  mountains.  Beyond  them  lies  a  mighty 
sea,  which  may  be  discerned  from  their  summit.  All  the  streams 
which  flow  down  the  southern  side  of  those  mountains  into  that  sea, 
abound  in  gold;  and  the  kings  who  reign  upon  its  borders  eat  and 
drink  out  of  golden  vessels.  Gold,  in  fact,  is  as  common  and  plenti- 
ful among  those  people  of  the  south,  as  iron  is  among  you  Spaniards." 
The  way  to  this  tempting  region,  he  added,  was  difficult,  and  beset 
with  savage  tribes;  but  offered  his  services  in  a  march  thither.  Ilis 
guest  listened  with  eager  interest,  and  his  heart  beat  high  with  the 
hope  of  achieving  an  exploit  which  should  place  his  name  high  in 
the  list  of  discoverers  and  conquerors. 

On  his  return  to  Darien,  he  dispatched  a  large  sum  of  gold,  for  the 
royal  treasury,  to  Ilispaniola,  and  entreated  assistance  from  Diego 


THE  SKTTLEMENT  OF  THE  I8TUMUB. 


91 


ColumbuB,  then  viceroy  of  that  island.    He  next  set  forth,  with  an 
liundred  and  seventy  men,  to  search  for  the  famous  temple  of  Do- 
bayba,  whose  walls,  according  to  tl^e  native  reports,  shone  with 
golden  ornaments  of  inestimable  value.     lie  soon  came  upon  a 
strange  tract  of  marshes,  interspersed  with  great  trees,  among  whose 
spreading  branches  the  people  of  that  dismal  region  had  their  abodes. 
Under  the  palace  of  Abebeiba,  their  king,  the  Spanish  marauders 
halted,  calling  on  his  majesty  by  their  interpreters,  and  bidding  him 
come  down.     "But  hee  denyed,"  says  the  old  chronicle,  "that  hee 
would  come  out  of  his  house,  desyring  them  to  sufifer  him  to  ly  ve 
after  his  fnshione.        *        *        When  he  hadde  denyed  them 
againe,  they  fell  to  hewing  the  tree  with  their  axes.    Abebeiba,  see- 
ing the  chippes  fall  from  the  tree  on  every  side,  chaunged  his  pur- 
pose, and  came  downe,  with  onely  two  of  his  sons."    Urged  to  produce 
his  store  of  the  precious  metal,  the  simple  monarch  replied  that  "hee 
had  no  golde,  and  that  hee  neuer  had  any  neede  thereof,  nor  yet 
regarded  it  any  mOre  then  stones."    But  seeing  them  "  veiy  instant 
with  him,"  he  promised  to  bring  them  some  from  the  neighbouring 
mountains,  and  took  his  departure.     Meanwhile,  his  unscrupulous 
guests  refreshed  themselves  from  the  royal  larder  and  cellar,  which 
latter,  that  the  "wine"  (more  probably  maize-beer)  might  not  be  dis- 
turbed by  the  oscillations  of  the  palace,  was  kept  in  a  species  of 
vault  at  the  foot  of  the  tree.    They  waited  several  days,  but  in  vain, 
for  the  return  of  their  host,  with  the  expected  store  of  gold.    Per- 
haps he  never  returned  to  his  airy  habitation,  for  the  narrative  sub- 
sequently mentions  "  Abebeiba,  the  inhabitour  of  the  tree,  who  had 
now  likewise  forsaken  his  countrey  fbr  feare  of  our  men,  and  wan- 
dered in  the  desolate  mountaines  and  woodes." 

Unable  to  find  the  desired  temple,  Balboa,  having  collected  con- 
siderable plunder,  returned  to  the  town,  where  his  energies  were 
speedily  called  forth  by  sedition  and  liiiian  hostility.  Both  were 
suppressed  with  sternness  and  promptitude;  and  his  authority  was 
soon  confirmed  by  a  letter  from  the  treasurer  of  Uispaniola. 

Aware,  however,  that  the  influence  of  his  enemies  at  court  was 
great,  he  row  resolved,  by  some  notable  exploit,  to  place  his  fortunes 
on  a  steadier  foundation.  To  discover  the  great  sea  beyond  the 
mountains  and  turn  its  streams  of  gold  into  the  Spanish  treasury, 
would  assure  him  fame  and  immunity.  Accordingly,  on  the  1st  of 
September,  1513,  with  an  hundred  and  ninety  companions,  well 
armed  and  resolute,  after  a  solemn  religious  ceremonial,  he  set  out 


92 


THB  PIOPLK'8  BOOK  Ok  HISTORY. 


to  light  hifl  way  to  the  shores  of  the  unexplored  ocean.  On  the  20th 
he  Icfl  the  territories  of  Ponca,  a  chief  whom  he  had  defeated  and 
conciliated,  and  was  soon  involved  in  a  region  perilous  by  its  vast 
marshes  and  other  natural  obstacles.  Quamqua,  the  chief  of  thJH 
country,  with  a  great  army,  set  on  him,  while  entangled  in  these 
difficulties;  but  the  fire-arms  and  the  ferocious  blc  I-hounds  of  the 
invaders  were  too  much  for  the  undisciplined  cuuruge  and  inefficient 
weapons  of  the  Indian  multitudes;  they  were  signally  defeated,  with 
a  loss  of  six  hundred,  including  their  cacique.  Several  of  the  pris- 
oners, with  a  cruelty  habitual  to  the  Spaniards,  were  given  to  be  torn 
in  pieces  by  the  hounds;  and  considerable  plunder,  in  gold  and 
jewels,  wa&  found  in  the  conquered  villages. 

By  this  time,  from  wounds,  fatigue  and  illness,  so  many  of  the 
command  had  become  disabled,  that  Balboa,  with  only  sixty-seven 
companions,  commenced  the  ascent  of  the  mountains.  On  the  26th 
of  September,  1518,  as  they  approached  the  summit,  the  general 
halted  his  force,  and  ordered  that  no  man  should  stir  from  his  place, 
lie  ascended  alone,  and  on  gaining  the  highest  point,  beheld  the 
distant  Pacific,  never  before  surveyed  by  European  eyes,  glittering 
in  the  south.  Overcome  with  joy,  he  kneeled  and  returned  fervent 
thanks  to  God.  His  people,  with  uncontrollable  eagerness,  hastened 
up.  A  solemn  Te  Dtum  was  sung  by  all,  and  formal  possession  of 
the  new  ocean,  with  all  its  coasts  and  islands,  was  made  by  proclama- 
tion in  the  name  of  Castile.  It  is  not  a  little  singular  that  the  first 
European  settlement  on  the  Western  Continent  should  have  been  at 
the  only  .spot  from  which  the  Great  Western  Ocean  was  accessible,  and 
that  a  discovery  of  such  importance  should  have  followed  so  closely 
on  a  report  of  its  possibility;  but  this  very  circumstance  tended 
greatly  to  mislead  future  explorers,  and  to  foster  delusive  hopes  of 
reaching  it  as  easily  in  other  latitudes — as  witness  the  ottempt  of  La 
Salle  by  the  St  Lawrence,  and  of  Hudson  by  the  North  lliver,  to 
gain  the  shores  of  China — the  belief  of  the  Virginian  settlers  that  the 
Chesapeake  led  thither,  and  the  confident  expectation,  so  long  enter- 
tained, of  finding  an  easy  passage  to  India  by  the  north  of  America. 

Leaving  a  cross  and  a  pile  of  stones  to  mark  the  scene  of  his 
memorable  discovery,  Balboa  hastened  to  the  shore  of  the  yet-dis- 
tant ocean.  He  defeated  many  savages,  and  gained  vast  booty  in 
gold  on  the  way.  Arrived  at  last  on  the  sca-siiore,  he  grasped  a 
banner,  and,  plunging  into  the  waves,  took  solemn  possession  in  the 
iKime  of  the  Spanish  crown,  vowing  to  maintain,  against  all  chal- 


TUK  8KTTLEMENT  OV  T  II  K   IHTIIMUS. 


98 


lengcrs,  Christian  or  infidel,  its  "empire  and  dominion  over  these 
Indies,  islands,  ond  Terra  Firma,  northern  and  southern,  with  nil 
their  tteos,  both  at  the  Arctic  and  Antarctic  poles,  on  cither  side  of 
the  equinoctial  line,  whether  within  or  without  the  tropics  of  Cancer 
and  Capricorn,  both  now  and  in  all  times,  as  long  as  the  world 
cndurcH,  and  until  the  final  judgment  of  all  mankind."  Of  all  the 
vast  regions  of  sea  and  land  included  in  this  swelling  annunciation, 
what  now  remains  to  a  nation  whose  conquests  were  stained  with 
such  hideous  murder  and  cruelty,  and  whose  government  was  marked 
by  such  oppression,  rapacity,  and  illiberal  exclusiveness  I     , 


VJitXitliitjilltitl* 

THBRKTURy  MARCH.  —  APPOIMTXENT  OFFIDRARIAS  DAVILA. 
— HIS  EXPEDITION. — HIS  JJA10U8T  OP  BALBOA, — MISFOR- 
TUNES OP  THE  COLONY.  —  EXPEDITION  OP  MORALES  AND  PI- 
ZARRO.  —  RECONCILIATION  OP  PEDRARIA8  AND  BALBOA. 
— VESSELS  CONVEYED  OVERLAND  TO  THE  PACIPIC. —      > 
SUDDEN  ARREST,  TRIAL  AND  EXECUTION  OP  BALBOA. 


Seizing  some  Indian  canoes,  which  he  found  on  the  shore,  Bal- 
boa, with  sixty  men,  launched  boldly  forth  into  the  unknown  ocean. 
Storms,  and  the  uangers  of  the  coast,  forbade  any  extensive  voyage 
in  these  frail  craft,  but  the  adventurer  learned  of  the  natives*  enough 
to  fire  his  highest  ambition  and  to  excite  his  utmost  energies.  The 
land,  they  assured  him,  had  no  end,  and  fur  in  the  south  gold  was 
to  be  found  in  abundance,  and  certain  animals  were  used  as  beasts 
of  burden.  They  moulded  in  clay  the  figure  cf  a  lama,  in  confirm- 
ation of  their  story,  and  readily  furnished  large  quantities  of  gold 
and  pearls  to  their  rapacious  visitors.  Early  in  November,  the  expe- 
dition set  out  on  its  return,  taking  many  Indians  to  assist  in  carry- 
ing the  treasure,  which  had  become  too  bulky  for  transportation  by 
its  owners.  The  march  homeward  was  distinguished  by  extreme 
suffering  and  great  cruelty  inflicted  on  the  native  inhabitants.  Num- 
bers of  the  Indian  porters,  burdened  with  gold,  not  being  permitted 
to  curry  sufficient  food  for  their  support,  perished  on  the  way;  and 
the  atrocities  inflicted  on  the  people  of  those  districts  through  which 


91 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


•  tlic  Spaniards  passed,  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that,  in  a  single 
instance,  they  "gaue  four  Kings"  (chiefs)  "to  be  devoured  by  doggus." 
Nearly  three  months  were  consumed  in  this  terrible  return  march, 
bu*  the  relics  of  the  force  finally  reached  Darien  with  a  treasure  in 
pearls  and  gold,  which  cast  into  the  shade  all  booty  acquired  by 
previous  marauders. 

Meanwhile,  the  enemies  of  Balboa,  possessing  the  ear  of  the  court, 
had  procured  the  appointment  of  Pedrarias  Davila,  a  man  of  a  cruel 
and  treacherous  character,  as  governor  of  Darien.  The  accounts 
already  received  of  an  ocean,  and  of  wealthy  kingdoms  lying  beyond 
the  inountains,  had  inflamed  the  public  mind  with  sanguine  expecta- 
tion; .vnd  accordingly,  for  the  first  time  since  the  memorably-disas- 
trous voyage  of  Ovando,  cavaliers  and  speculators  flocked  in  crowds 
to  join  an  expedition  to  the  New  World.  With  fifteen  sail,  carry- 
ing two  thousand  impatient  adventurers,  the  new  governor,  on  the 
12l]i  of  April,  1514,  took  his  departure.  Just  afterwards,  arrived 
a  messenger  from  Balboa,  announcing  his  splendid  discovery,  and 
bearing  daz:^ling  specimens  of  the  wealth  of  the  ivSthmus.  Propiti- 
ated by  these  tidings,  Ferdinand,  regretting  his  precipitancy,  at  once 
dispatched  fresh  instructions,  constituting  the  fortunate  di.scovcrer 
Lieutenant  of  the  South  Sea,  and  conferring  on  him  the  rule  of 
important  provinces  in  the  adjoining  region. 

Pedrarias,  on  his  arrival,  found  the  colony,  by  the  indefatigable 
exertions  of  his  predecessor,  in  a  state  of  considerable  prosperitv, 
Darien  already  containing  five  hundred  European  inhabitants,  with 
thrice  that  number  of  natives.  The  depo.sed  governor  readily  sub- 
mitted to  the  authority  of  his  rival,  and  the  latter,  with  excessive 
meanness,  having,  by  a  pretended  friendliness,  gained  full  informa- 
tion of  the  late  surveys  and  discoveries,  began  to  attempt  his  ruin. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  royal  missive,  he  withheld  it  for  a  time,  and 
finall}',  through  the  interposition  of  Quevedo,  bishop  of  the  province, 
only  so  far  relaxed  his  injustice  as  to  permit  its  acceptance  on  con- 
dition of  the  dejiendcnce  of  the  Lieutenant  on  his  own  authority. 
Ilia  jealous  and  irritable  tamper  was  further  inflamed  by  the  arrival 
of  a  vessel  from  Cuba,  with  seventy  hardy  adventurers,  who  had 
come  to  accompany  Balboa  on  a  fresh  expedition  to  the  Pacific.  lie 
arbitrarily  forbade  the  projected  excursion,  and  it  is  said  was  with  dif- 
ficulty dissuaded  from  confining  the  object  of  his  suspicion  in  a  cage. 
His  own  admirii-stration,  from  the  commencement,  was  marked  by 
ill-f<jrtune  and  mismanagement.     Of  the  rash  and  improvident  mul- 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  ISTHMUS. 


95 


titude  which  he  had  brought  over,  seven  hundred  soon  perished  of  * 
disease  and  hunger;  others  took  refuge  in  Cuba,  and  many,  in  miser- 
able plight,  returned  to  Spain.  A  force  of  four  hundred  men,  which 
ho  dispatched  to  open  a  line  of  communication  with  the  Pacific, 
failed,  with  much  disaster,  from  the  hostility  of  the  Indians;  and 
another,  of  two  hundred,  which,  under  Balboa  and  Luis  Carillo, 
figain  set  forth  in  quest  of  the  temple  of  Dobayba,  was  compelled 
by  the  same  cause  to  retreat  to  Darien,  with  the  loss  of  more  than 
half  their  number. 

A  more  fortunate  expedition  was  made  by  Gaspar  Morales,  a  rela- 
tive of  the  governor,  who,  accompanied  by  Francisco  Pizarro,  a 
spirit  as  fierce  and  cruel  as  himself,  set  forth,  in  command  of  sixty 
men,  to  cross  the  mountains.  Arriving  at  the  South  Sea,  (whither 
Pizarro  had  already  journeyed  with  Balbou,)  the  two  commanders, 
with  a  small  force,  in  four  canoes,  embarked  for  the  Pearl  Islands, 
lying  some  distance  from  the  coast.  The  c^-iief  cacique,  after  a  spir- 
ited resistance,  was  defeated;  and  submittii.3  with  the  best  grace  he 
could  assume,  conducted  the  victors  to  his  palace,  where  he  received 
baptism  at  their  hands,  and  bestowed  on  them  a  basket  of  pearls,  of 
more  than  a  hundred  weight,  some  of  which  were  large  as  hazel-nuts, 
lie  took  the  leaders  to  the  summit  of  a  tower,  whence  he  showed  them 
the  long  line  of  coast  stretching  to  the  golden  realms  of  the  Incas — 
the  destined  prey  of  an  obscure  adventurer  then  standing  beside  him. 

The  return  of  this  company,  harassed  by  Indian  hostilities,  was 
marked  by  the  most  frightful  scenes  of  massacre  and  cruelty.  A 
native  force,  attacked  by  surprise,  in  the  dead  of  night,  was  cut  off 
to  the  number  of  seven  hundred;  and  eighteen  caciques,  taken  by 
stratagem,  were  devoured  alive  by  bloodhounds.  The  Spaniards, 
worn  out  by  repeated  attacks,  retreated  slowly,  killing  their  prison- 
ers on  the  way,  that  the  fierceness  of  the  pursuit  might  be  checked 
by  the  lamentations  of  their  friends  over  the  bodies;  and  one  of  the 
marauders,  unable  to  keep  up  the  march,  hanged  himself  to  a  tree, 
rather  than  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  avenging  natives.  After  ex- 
treme and  well-deserved  suffering,  the  relics  of  the  expedition,  with 
a  vast  hoard  of  ill-gotten  treasure,  arrived  at  Darien. 

The  enmity  of  the  surrounding  tribes,  now  thoroughly  aroused, 
kept  the  settlers  in  a  state  of  constant  anxiety.  An  hundred  and 
eighty  men,  well  armed  and  supplied  with  artillery,  attacked  among 
tangled  forests  and  morasses,  were  cut  off  to  a  man.  The  town  itself 
was  soon  almost  in  a  state  of  siege;  and  the  governor  was  compelled 


96 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


reluctantly  to  accept  the  services  of  his  able  and  experienced  rival, 
a3  the  only  means  of  preserving  the  colony.  To  cement  the  doubt- 
ful alliance,  which  was  brought  about  by  Quevedo,  it  was  agreed 
that  Balboa  should  receive  in  marriage  a  daughter  of  the  governor, 
to  be  sent  for  from  Spain  (1516). 

That  active  commander,  permitted  to  resume  his  ambitious  career, 
made  strenuous  exertions  in  preparing  for  a  great  expedition  to  the 
South  Sea.  He  built  two  vessels  on  the  shore  of  the  Atlantic,  which, 
with  almost  incredible  labour,  were  carried  piecemeal  over  the  mount- 
ains, and  put  together  on  the  shores  of  the  Pacific.  Numbers  of  the 
natives  perished  in  this  exhausting  task,  but  it  was  observed  that  the 
Spaniards,  and  especially  negroes,  of  hardier  frame,  endured  the  labour 
with  less  distress  and  mortality.  Two  brigantines,  the  first  of  Eu- 
ropean build  that  ever  floated  on  the  Pacific,  were  finally  launched 
upon  the  Kiver  Balsas,  and  Balboa,  with  his  companions,  embarking, 
j)usbed  with  exultation  into  the  waters  of  the  unknown  ocean.  The 
course  which  he  pursued,  along  the  shore  of  the  isthmus,  would  have 
brought  him  in  time  to  the  wealthy  regions  of  Peru ;  but,  after  pass- 
ing the  great  gulf  of  San  Miguel,  the  winds  proved  so  adverse  that 
he  was  coiiipelled  to  retrace  his  course.  He  landed  on  the  main- 
land, where  he  defeated  a  large  force  of  Indians,  and  then,  proi-eed- 
iug  to  the  Pearl  Islands,  set  about  building  two  additional  vessels. 

In  the  midst  of  his  ardent  and  ambitious  projects,  sudden  ruin 
and  destruction  overtook  the  discoverer  and  intended  explorer  of 
the  Pacific.  The  falsehood  and  treachery  of  one  Garabit<j,  his  secret 
enemy,  whom  he  had  dispatched  on  business  to  the  settlement,  so 
worke<l  on  tlie  jealous  mind  of  Pedrarias,  that,  supposing  his  rival 
to  aspire  to  a  kingdom  of  his  own,  he  resolved  on  his  immediate 
overthrow.  The  unsuspecting  commander,  by  a  friendly  message, 
requesting  an  interview,  was  induced  to  cross  the  mountains;  and 
was  met  on  ilie  way  by  an  armed  force  under  Pizarro,  who  put  him 
in  chains,  and  conveyed  him  to  the  town  of  Ada.  He  was  imme- 
diately put  on  trial  for  treason,  and  though  the  evidence  against  him 
was  little  more  than  the  perjury  of  Garabito,  the  alcalde,  overawed 
by  the  governor,  gave  reluctantly  a  judgment  of  conviction.  Tht 
latter,  with  sanguinary  haste,  ordered  his  immediate  execution,  and 
that  of  four  of  his  :issociates.  The  unfortunate  man,  after  confessing 
and  partaking  of  the  sacrament,  laid  his  head,  with  his  accustomed 
courage,  on  the  fatal  block,  and,  at  a  single  stroke,  amid  the  lament- 
utions  of  the  people,  it  was  severed  from  his  body  (1617). 


THE  8ETTLEMFN?  OF  THE  ISTHMUS 


97 


Thus  perished,  at  the  age  forty -two,  one  of  the  boldest,  most 
sagacious,  and,  for  a  brief  tiiae,  most  fortunate,  of  the  early  Spanish 
adventurers.  How  confident  were  his  hopes,  and  how  ardent  his  zeal 
for  enterprise,  appears  in  the  indignant  vindication  of  his  conduct  to 
the  implacable  governor.  "I  had  four  ships,"  he  says,  "ready  for' 
sea,  three  hundred  men  at  my  command,  and  an  open  sea  before  me. 
What  had  I  to  do  but  to  set  sail  and  press  forward?  There  was 
no  doubt  of  finding  a  land,  whether  rich  or  poor,  enough  for  me  and 
mine,  far  beyond  your  control."  That  his  life,  if  spared  a  few  years 
longer,  would  have  received  fresh,  illustration  from  new  and  grand 
discoveries,  can  hardly  be  doubted ;  and  it  is  probable  that,  but  for 
this  sudden  and  tragic  occurrence,  the  career  of  Pizarro  would  have 
been  anticipated,  and  that  the  discoverer  of  the  Pacific  would  also 
have  been  the  conqueror  of  the  wealthiest  kingdoms  lying  on  its 
shores. 


CEAPTEH  HI. 


JERNANDO  MAGELLAN. HIS  YOYAOE  TO  THE  SOUTH-WEST.— 

WINTERS  AT  PORT  ST.  JULIAN, — THE  PATAGONIANS. — DIS- 
COVERY AND  PASSAGE  OF  THE  STRAITS  OF  MAGELLAN. 

VOYAGE   THROUGH   THE  PACIFIC   TO  THE   PHILIPPINB 

ISLES.  —  RASHNESS  AND   DEATH    OF    MAGELLAN. — 

THE  WORLD  CIRCUMN A VIO ATEA 


The  brilliant  exploit  of  Balboa  in  attaining  the  Pacific  by  an 
overland  route,  was  in  a  few  years  followed  up  by  the  extraordinary 
voyage  of  Magellan,  who  first  reached  it  by  sea,  and  to  whom  is 
justly  due  the  cedit  of  first  circumnavigating  the  globe.  The  hope 
of  finding  a  westerly  passage  to  the  fragrant  seas  of  India,  so  long 
the  fiivourite  object  of  Columbus  and  other  enterprising  voyagers, 
had  been  gradually  relinquished,  as  the  vast  extent  of  the  American 
continent  became  apparent.  Spain,  however,  jealously  disputing 
with  Portugal  her  title,  under  the  Papal  grant,  to  the  Moluccas  or 
Spice  Lslands,  was  constantly  on  the  alert  to  take  advantage  of  any 
opportunity  which  might  give  her  priority  of  possession;  and  Fer- 
nando Magellan,  a  subject  of  the  rival  power,  disappointed  in  his 
Vol.  III.— 7 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOKY. 

opes  of  promotion  for  service  in  India,  carried  his  brilliant  talents, 
his  splendid  courage,  and  invincible  perseverance  to  the  court  of 
Charles  V.  There  he  strongly  urged  the  feasibility  of  an  attempt 
once  more  to  reach  India  from  the  west,  and  Ximenes,  the  enlight- 
ened minister  of  that  monarch,  favoured  his  proposals.  With  five 
small  vessels  and  two  hundred  and  thirty  men,  on  the  20th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1519,  he  set  sail  from  the  port  of  San  Lucar. 

Coasting  southerly  along  the  shores  of  Brazil,  he  found  a  conve- 
nient harbour,  which  he  named  Port  St.  Julian,  in  about  the  fiftieth 
degree  of  south  latitude.  Here  he  anchored  his  squadron,  and  passed 
the  winter  of  1520,  which,  extending  from  May  to  September,  proved 
exceedingly  severe.  A  formidable  mutiny,  which  broke  out  at  this 
place,  was  suppressed  by  Magellan  with  great  promptness  and  sever- 
ity; two  of  the  ringleaders  being  put  to  death,  and  a  third  set  on 
shore  to  perish.  For  two  months  none  of  the  natives  were  seen, 
but  one  d;ty  a  man  of  gigantic  stature,  nearly  naked,  was  seen  danc- 
ing violently  on  the  beach,  and  throwing  dust  on  his  head,  in  token 
of  friendship  or  submission.  Numbers  of  these  people,  all  of  great 
size,  soon  appeared,  "marvelling  vastly  to  see  such  large  ships  and 
such  little  men."  From  the  uncouth  covering  of  their  feet,  rudely 
shaped  from  the  hide  of  the  guanaco,  the  Spaniards  gave  them  the 
name  of  Patagonea,  or  "clumsy-hoofed" — a  name  by  which  they 
have  ever  since  been  known.  One  of  them  learned  to  repeat  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  on  which  signal  evidence  of  conversion  he  was  bap- 
tized under  the  name  of  Juan  Giganto  ("John  Giant").  Two  of 
these  poor  savages  were  treacherously  seized,  as  curiosities;  but  a 
vile  stratagem  to  get  possession  of  some  of  the  women  (to  propagate 
a  breed  of  giants  in  Spain)  was  deservedly  defeated,  and  resulted 
in  the  death  of  one  of  the  invaders. 

The  Spring  came  on,  and  Magellan,  getting  his  little  squadron 
under  way,  again  stood  southward.  In  the  latter  part  of  October, 
to  his  great  exultation,  he  beheld  an  opening  in  the  westward  through 
the  iron-bound  coast  which  had  hitherto  seemed  interminable.  Into 
this  famous  strait,  which  still  bears  his  name,  favoured  by  a  strong 
current,  the  dauntless  discoverer,  with  tliree  ships,  boldly  pushed 
his  way — though  his  crews,  disheartened,  were  clamorous  fur  return. 
He  would  press  onward,  he  jvssured  them,  even  if  they  were  reduced 
to  eat  the  hides  from  the  ships'  rigging — an  antici])ation  of  funiinc 
literally  fulfilled;  and  reminding  thorn  of  the  fate  of  the  late  nniti- 
ncc:-s,  sternly  repressed  all  opposition.     For  thirty-seven  days,  amid 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  ISTHMUS. 


99 


storms  and  foul  weather,  the  little  squadron  struggled  westward 
through  this  perilous  and  intricate  passage.  On  the  28th  of  Novem- 
ber, the  open  sea  was  seen  stretching  inimitably  before  them,  Ma- 
gellan burst  into  tears  of  joy,  and  ordered  a  public  thanksgiving  for 
the  memorable  event. 

Having  stood  northward  awhile,  to  gain  a  more  genial  climate, 
the  little  lleet  for  four  months  was  wafted  along  by  breezes  so  gentle 
and  propitious,  that  the  name  of  the  "  Pacific,"  which  Magellan  gave 
to  the  great  ocean  he  was  exploring,  seemed  aptly  enough  bestowed. 
But  famine  pressed  terribly  on  the  adventurous  mariners,  so  long 
secluded  from  the  possibility  of  obtaining  supplies ;  and  when,  on 
the  16th  of  March,  1521,  they  arrived  at  the  Philippine  Isles,  twenty 
of  their  number  were  dead,  and  the  remainder  were  in  a  forlorn 
condition  of  suflfering  and  emaciation.     Singular  to  state,  only  two 
islands  had  been  passed  in  this  long  and  remarkable  voyage,  and 
those  so  lonely  and  forbidding  in  their  appearance  as  to  receive  the 
name  of  Desventaduras^  or  the  Unfortunate.     On  the  5th  of  April, 
the  ships  arrived  at  the  town  and  harbour  of  Zebu,  with  the  prince 
of  which  island  Magellan  soon  formed  an  apparently  friendly  alliance. 
With  the  customary  zeal  for  conversion,  he  immediately  commenced 
propagating  the  faith,  and  by  a  mixture  of  force  and  friendship,  soon 
gained  great  numbers  of  proselytes.     This  promising  career  was  cut 
short  by  an  extraordinary  piece  of  rashness  and  hardihood.    Tho 
sovereign  of  Matan,  a  neighbouring  island,  was  at  feud  with  the  king 
of  Zebu,  and  to  the  demand  of  Magellan  that  he  should  yield  trib- 
ute and  allegiance  to  Spain,  returned  a  haughty  refusal.     Naturally 
fierce  and  irritable,  and  now  flushed  with  success  and  ambition,  the 
fiery  Portuguese  determined  to  end  all  opposition  with  the  sword. 
With  forty-nine  of  his  bravest  men,  clad  in  complete  armour,  he 
made  a  landing  on  the  refractory  island,  and  was  soon  engaged  in 
desperate  conflict  with  a  force  of  three  thousand  natives.     The  battle 
was  obstinately  contested  for  many  hours,  but  the  Spaniards,  over- 
powered by  numbers,  were  at  last  compelled  to  give  way.     Magellan, 
though  wounded  by  a  poisoned  arrow,  and  with  his  helmet  struck 
off,  continued  to  fight  with  desperation,  until,  his  sword  arm  disabled, 
he  was  beaten  to  the  ground,  and  perished  under  a  shower  of  javelins. 
Eight  of  his  men  were  killed,  and  twenty-two  wounded.     The  sur- 
vivors, with  difficulty,  regained  their  boats.    In  this  obscure  skirmish 
j'orished  the  boldest,  firmest,  and,  but  for  his  rashness,  the  most 
fortunate  of  that  brilliant  line  of  navigators  who  succeeded  to  the 


100 


THE  PEOFLE'B  BOOK  OF-HISTOBT. 


honours  of  Columbus.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  had  nearly 
completed  the  circumnavigation  of  the  globe,  having  in  a  former 
voyage,  sailed  far  to  the  eastward. 

The  king  of  Zebu,  seeing  the  misfortune  of  his  allies,  took  ad- 
vantage to  commit  a  treacherous  massacre  on  a  number  of  them, 
whom  he  had  enticed  into  his  palace,  and  the  remainder  of  the 
Spaniards,  in  precipitate  alarm,  hastened  their  departure  from  the 
island.  Only  one  vessel  of  the  fleet,  the  Vitoria,  a  little  bark  of 
sixty  tons,  succeeded  in  completing  this  extraordinary  voyage.  After 
a  cruise  of  three  years,  during  which  she  traversed  fifty  thousand 
miles  of  ocean,  this  slender  craft,  with  the  mere  remnant  of  a  crew, 
on  the  6th  of  September,  1522,  arrived  at  San  Lucar.  She  was 
drawn  ashore,  and  remained  for  many  years  a  monument  of  the 
most  remarkable  achievement  of  the  century.  Iler  commander, 
Sebastian  del  Cano,  inheriting,  as  survivor,  the  honours  due  to 
the  unfortunate  Magellan,  was  ennobled  by  the  emperor,  and  received 
ixa  his  arms  the  device  of  a  globe,  with  the  memorable  legend: 

"PRIMUS  ME  CIRCUMDEDISTI," 
{Thou  firtl  hut  encomftuted  mm,) 


X 


CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


uiLli/iJrxJuJbi    X. 

PROGRESS  OP  SPANISH  CONaUEST.— DISCO  VERT  OP  YUCATAN 

—  OF  MEXICO  — HERNANDO  CORTES.  —  HIS  EXPEDITION. 

—  ASCENT  OP  THE  RIO  DE  TABASCO.  —  CONTESTS  WITH 

THE  INDIANS. — ARRIVAL  AT  SAN  JUAN  DE  DLUA. 

The  singular  compound  of  crusading  fanaticism  and  of  practical 
rapacity  which  distinguished  the  Spaniards  in  their  conquest  of  the 
New  World,  as  well  as  the  wonderfully-rapid  successes  which  those 
traits,  so  repulsively  mingled,  insured  them,  are  hardly  to  be  paral- 
leled, except  in  the  early  career  of  Mahometanism.  With  the  sword 
in  one  hand  and  the  missal  in  the  other,  leaving  crosses  and  stakes 
the  tokens  of  his  march,  the  Spaniard  pressed  on  to  plunder,  to  con- 
quest, and  conversion,  with  a  fierceness  and  inflexibility  which,  to 
this  day,  have  left  their  withering  traces  on  the  entire  scene  of  action. 
The  feeble  and  unwarlike  races  of  the  archipelago  had  fallen  an  easy 
prey  before  the  invader;  his  footsteps  were  firmly  planted  on  the 
main-land ;  and  in  rapid  succession  the  two  great  native  empires  of 
the  Northern  and  Southern  Continents — empires  strong  in  ancient 
rule,  and  far  advanced  in  civilization — were  destined  to  vanish  from 
the  earth  with  a  suddenness  and  a  horror  which,  at  this  day,  must 
surprise  and  appal  the  historical  sj)ectator. 

The  island  of  Cuba,  first  colonized  in  1611,  had  been  settled  with 
extraordinary  rapidity,  and  the  ever-restless  adventurers  began  soon 
to  look  around  for  wider  fields  of  conquest,  and  richer  objects  of 
phmder.  Ilenandez  de  Cordova,  in  1517,  sailing  to  the  Bahamas  in 
(jiu'st  of  slaves  to  replace  the  half-depopulated  tribes  of  that  island, 
was  driven  westward  by  gales,  and  finally  made  land  at  Cape  Catocho, 
ill  Vut-atan,     Massive  buildinira.  and  other  evidences  of  civilization. 


102 


TIIK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY, 


were  observed,  but  the  discoverers,  every  where  fiercely  withstood 
by  the  natives,  were  compelled  to  quit  the  coast,  and,  after  losing 
more  than  half  their  number,  regained  the  shores  of  Cuba.     In  tiio 
following  year  (May  lat,  1518)  Velasquez,  the  Cuban  governor,  dis- 
patched ibur  vessels,  under  his  nephew,  Juan  dc  Grijalva,  in  the 
same  direction.     That  oiTicer,  after  touching  at  the  island  of  Cozu- 
mel,  coasted  along  the  great  southern  peninsula,  meeting,  wherever 
he  lauded,  a  fierce  and  determined  resistance  from  the  inhabitants. 
Keeping  westward,  he  arrived  on  the  shores  of  Mexico,  and  engaged 
in  friendly  traffic  with  the  people  of  that  country.     Gold  and  jewels 
were  obtained  in  abundance,  and  after  a  voyage  of  six  months,  in 
which  a  large  extent  of  the  main-land  coast  had  been  explored,  the 
squadron  relumed  to  Cuba.    Stimulated  by  this  success,  and  by  the 
flattering  accounts  of  Grijalva,  the  governor  proceeded  to  fit  out  an 
expedition  on  a  more  extensive  scale. 

Ilernando  Cortes,  to  whom  he  had  resolved  to  entrust  the  com- 
mand, was  a  native  of  Medellin,  in  Estramadura,  and  was,  at  this 
time,  thirty-three  years  of  age.  From  boyhood,  he  had  been  of  a 
reckless,  adventurous  disposition,  and,  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  had 
sailed  for  Ilispaniola  to  seek  his  fortune.  Arrived  there,  he  was 
kindly  received  by  the  governor,  Ovando,  who  offered  him  a  tract 
of  land.  "I  came  to  get  gold,"  replied  the  haughty  and  rapacious 
youth,  "not  to  till  the  soil  like  a  peasant."  lie  accepted  the  grant, 
however,  with  its  accustomed  quota  of  Indian  slaves,  and  was  fre- 
quently engaged,  under  Velasquez,  in  the  defeat  and  enslavement  of 
the  insurgent  natives,  lie  accompanied  that  commander,  in  1512, 
on  the  conquest  of  Cuba,  and  acquired,  by  mining  and  planting,  con- 
siderable property.  During  his  residence  on  that  island,  he  was 
alternately  under  the  favour  and  displeasure  of  his  chief,  who,  at 
one  time,  it  is  said,  was  so  enruged  against  him  as  to  have  been  on 
the  point  of  ordering  his  execution.  They  became  reconciled,  how- 
ever, Cortes  embarking  all  his  means  in  the  projected  enterprise, 
and  Velasquez,  acquainted  with  his  courage  and  abilities,  assuring 
him  of  the  command.  Under  the  stimulus  of  ambition  and  o|)por- 
tunity,  his  character,  marked  before  by  levity,  sensuality,  and  rash- 
ness, underwent  a  marked  change;  and  all  the  extraordinary  faculties 
of  energy,  policy,  and  perseverance,  hitherto  latent,  took  the  com- 
plete ascendency. 

So  splendid  appeared  the  anticipated  prize,  that  the  colonists  of 
the  island,  though  hardly  settled  in  titcir  new  possessions,  flocked  iu 


THE   CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


103 


great  numbers  to  his  standard.  Three  hundred  volunteers  were 
800U  assembled  in  the  town  of  St.  Jago,  and  preparations  were  made 
with  great  eagerness  and  abandonment.  "Nothing  was  to  be  seen," 
says  one  of  the  company,  "or  spoken  of,  but  selling  lands  to  purchase 
arms  and  horses,  quilting  coats  of  mail,  making  bread,  and  salting 
pork,  for  sea-stores."  Instructions  were  made  out  by  the  governor, 
enjoining  the  conversion  of  the  natives  and  the  furtherance  of  traf- 
fic with  them.  They  were  also  to  be  invited  to  give  in  their  alle- 
giance to  his  Most  Catholic  Majesty,  "and  to  manifest  it  by  regaling 
him  with  such  comfortable  presents  of  gold,  pearls,  and  precious 
stones,  as  by  showing  their  own  good  will,  would  secure  his  favor 
and  protection." 

But,  when  all  was  ready,  Velasquez,  of  an  irritable  and  jealous 
disposition,  was  seized  with  a  sudden  distrust  of  his  officer,  and 
resolved  to  deprive  him  of  the  command.  Cortes,  apprized  of  his 
intention,  with  all  haste  got  his  squadron  under  way,  and  set  sail  at 
midnight,  the  enraged  governor  arriving  on  the  shore  just  in  time 
to  witness  his  departure.  He  touched  at  several  points  on  the  coast, 
strengthening  his  forces  and  equipment,  and  on  the  10th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1519,  sailed  from  Havana  for  Cape  San  Antonio.  There  he 
was  joined  by  fresh  reinforcements,  the  whole  command  consisting 
of  eleven  vessels,  manned  by  six  hundred  and  sixty-three  men. 
He  had  ten  cannon  and  sixteen  horses,  the  last  of  inestimable 
value  in  warfare  with  the  feebly-armed  and  half-naked  tribes  of 
America.  On  the  18th  of  Februarj-^,  the  whole  fleet  laid  its  course 
for  Yucatan. 

At  the  island  of  Cozumcl,  where  they  first  arrived,  the  Spaniards 
found  several  temples,  massively  constructed  of  stone  and  lime.  The 
Tiidians  proved  friendly,  and  two  reverend  friars,  attached  to  the 
expedition,  addres-sed  them,  with  little  effect,  on  the  merits  of  Chris- 
tianity; and  Cortos,  to  their  amazement,  tumbled  down  their  most 
venerated  idol,  and  replaced  it  with  a  statue  of  the  Virgin.  On  the 
4th  of  March,  the  fleet  again  set  sail,  and  soon  arrived  at  the  Rio  de 
Taba.sco,  near  the  southern  extremity  of  the  gulf  This  river  Cor- 
tes, with  a  part  of  his  army,  ascended  in  boats,  and,  on  the  second 
day,  was  encountered  by  a  great  body  of  Indians,  drawn  up  on  the 
bank  to  oppose  his  passage  and  defend  their  town  of  Tabasco.  A 
notary  public  made  solemn  proclamation  that  the  expedition  was 
"on  God's  service  and  the  King's,"  and  invoked  on  the  heads  of  thu 
natives  the  responsibility  of  a  contest — "all  which,''  says  Captain 


104 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOBY. 


Diaz,*  "being  duly  explained  to  them,  produced  no  effect;  they 
eecmed  aa  determined  to  oppose  us  as  they  were  l)efore."  They  were 
defeated,  after  a  pretty  sharp  resistance,  by  the  novel  terror  of  fire 
arms,  and  the  town  was  taken  by  the  victors ;  but  to  their  great  disgust, 
all  the  treasure  had  been  removed  before  their  arrival.  Cortes,  with 
much  form,  took  possession  of  the  country,  drawing  his  sword  and 
giving  three  cuts  upon  a  great  Ceiba-tree,  and  vowing  to  defend  the 
claim  of  the  Spanish  monarch  against  all  opponents. 

Learning  that  a  great  force  of  Indiana  was  assembled  on  the  neigh- 
bouring plain  of  Ceutla,  he  resolved,  by  striking  the  first  blow,  to 
inspire  terror  through  the  country.  Horses  and  artillery  were  accord- 
ingly landed,  and,  on  the  25th  of  March,  he  set  forth  against  the 
hostile  camp.  The  main  body,  defiling  over  a  long  causeway,  en- 
gaged the  enemy  in  front,  while  Cortes,  with  the  slender  squadron 
of  cavalry,  drew  a  circuit  to  attack  them  in  the  rear.  The  Indians 
fought  with  desperation  for  more  than  an  hour,  to  the  rude  and  dis- 
cordant music  of  conchs,  flutes  of  cane,  and  drums  hollowed  from 
the  trunks  of  trees;  and  flung  clouds  of  dust  into  the  air  to  conceal 
the  havoc  which  the  cannon  made  in  their  crowded  ranks.  But  when 
taken  in  the  rear  by  the  novel  and  terrible  apparition  of  armed 
horsemen,  sheathed  in  glittering  steel,  charging  among  them,  a  gen- 
eral panic  seized  the  whole  multitude.  The  infantry  renewed  their 
exertions,  and  the  unwieldy  mass  of  the  Indian  army  was  soon  com- 
pelled to  a  flight  which  it  was  considered  imprudent  to  follow. 
This  signal  victory  was  a.scribod  by  some  contemporary  histori- 
ans to  the  personal  exertions  of  St.  Jago,  the  patron  of  Spanish 
conquest.  Others  held  that  the  achievement  was  due  to  St.  Peter; 
but  honest  Diaz,  who  was  present,  says,  "it  might  be  the  case,  and 
I,  sinner  as  I  am,  was  not  worthy  to  be  permitted  to  see  it  *  * 
But  although  I,  unworthy  sinner  that  I  am,  was  unfit  to  behold 
either  of  those  Holy  Apostles — upwards  of  four  hundred  of  uj  were 
present;  let  their  testimony  be  taken." 

Ere  long,  the  caciques  of  the  vanquished  nation,  completely  over- 
awed, presented  themselves  at  the  camp,  bearing  propitiatory  offer- 
ings, and  tendering  the  submission  of  their  people.  They  were  filled 
with  wonder  at  all  which  they  beheld — the  strange  persons  and 
accoutrements  of  the  invaders,  the  terrible  power  of  the  cavalry, 
and  the  mystic  celebration  of  Catholic  ceremony.    To  the  inquisitive 

*  A  soldier  dibtingumhed  in  the  Wars  of  the  Conquest.     IliH  Memoirs  are  among 
tlie  mo»t  valuable,  AS  well  as  amusing,  of  all  original  histories. 


TUB  OONqUEBT  AMD  HISTOBY  OF  MEXICO. 


105 


demands  of  the  Spaniards  concerning  the  region  of  gold,  they 
answort'd,  pointing  to  the  west,  "Culchua"  and  "Mexico" — a  name 
destined  to  a  wide  and  unhappy  celebrity. 

Coasting  westward,  afler  this  triumph,  the  expedition  arrived  at 
the  island  of  San  Juan  de  Ulua,  opposite  the  present  site  of  Vera 
Cruz.  With  the  natives  of  this  place,  who,  conciliated  by  th^  for- 
mer visit  of  Grijalva,  pame  off  in  numbers  to  the  ships,  Cortes  was 
enabled  to  communicate  by  the  double  interpretation  of  a  Spaniard 
once  resident  with  the  Indians  of  the  South,  and  of  Donna  Marina, 
a  Mexican  female,  who  had  been  given  him  by  the  caciques  of 
Tabasco.  She  was  young  and  beautiful,  and  of  remarkable  intelli- 
gence, soon  acquiring  such  a  knowledge  of  Castilian  as  to  spare  the 
necessity  of  a  second  interpreter.  She  became  the  mistress  of  Cortes, 
to  whom  she  bore  a  son,  and  in  all  the  eventful  scenes  which  distin* 
guished  the  conquest,  bore  a  conspicuous  part,  as  his  interpreter  and 
companion.  But  before  proceeding  to  a  narration  of  those  scenes, 
it  is  proper  to  give  some  account  of  that  singular  nation,  the  first, 
and,  with  one  other  exception,  the  only  people  encountered  by  Eu- 
jopeans  in  the  New  World,  possessed  of  regular  government,  illus- 
trated by  national  history,  and  adorned  with  the  arts  of  civilization. 


CHAPTEH   n. 

THE    MEXICAN    ABORIGINES. — THEIR    ORIGIN    AND 

APPEARANCE. — THEIR  GOVERNMENT,  TH80L- 

OGT,  MANNERS  AND  CUSTOMS. 


TliK  original  inhabitants  of  ancient  Mexico  were  so  unlike  the 
timid  and  unsophisticated  islanders  with  whom  the  Spanish  discov- 
erers of  America  first  held  intercourse,  that  the  early  historians  of 
the  Conquest,  themselves  partakers  in  the  enterprise,  were  at  a  loss 
for  language  in  which  to  express  their  admiration.  The  dim  and 
uncertain  records  and  traditions  of  the  natives  throw  little  light  upon 
the  question  of  their  origin,  and  of  the  rise  and  progress  of  their 
civilization.  It  ap(>ears  that,  at  a  remote  period,  the  nation  of  the 
Toltecs  migrated  from  some  unknown  northern  region  to  the  beau- 
tiful Valley  of  Mexico;   and  that,  after  a  period  of  power  and 


106 


'fUt^fliP'B   BOOK  or   HISTORY. 


i)ro8p«fl*V'  *^y  *>»•  <*  reduced  y  (••  ^'ilence  and  other  catiaei, 
and  wwt  IMUeeeded  w  driven  .*ft"  I,,  -  ha/barous  Chichimecuji. 
Tlieae,  in  ^urn,  gave  place  to  the  Mven  tribt^  «t  e^"  Nuhuatlacas,  Uj 
which  haition  belonged  the  tribe  of  the  Aztecs,  the  j,.>«.se88or8  of  the 
cou<lifT  *t  ^hc  ^'oriod  of  Kuritj'  m  diBCovory.  The  fi)Uiidtttion  of 
their  cnj.i'jM  upon  ih^  lake  was  coinrnenced,  according  to  their  chro- 
nology, 111  tin^  y/    r  132f» 

The  Aztecs,  Iiku  &heir  predecessors,  came  originally  from  the  north, 
and  in  their  gradual  progress  southward  formed  many  temporary 
settlements  upon  the  route — at  least  the  character  of  the  ruins  still 
to  be  seen  between  the  Valley  and  the  borders  of  Upper  California 
appears  to  corroborate  the  national  tradition  of  the  migration. 

Of  their  general  physical  conformat-on,  the  following  brief  descrip- 
tion, given  by  Pritchard,  in  his  Natural  History  of  Man,  from  Cla- 
vigero,  will  suffice:  "The  Mexicans  are  of  a  good  stature,  generally 
rather  exceeding  than  falling  short  of  the  middle  si/c,  and  well  pro- 
j)ortioned  in  all  their  limbs.  They  have  good  complexions,  narrow 
foreheads,  black  eyes,  clean,  Ann,  regular  white  teeth;  thick,  black, 
coarse,  gK)8sy  hair;  thin  beards,  and  generally  no  hair  upon  their 
legs,  thi^lis,  and  arms:  their  skin  is  of  an  olive  colour. 

"There  is  scarcely  a  nsition  upon  earth  in  which  there  are  fewer 
persons  deformed;  and  it  would  be  more  difficult  to  find  a  single 
humpbacked,  lame,  or  squint-eyed  man  among  a  thousand  Mexicans 
than  among  a  hundred  of  any  other  nation  Among  the  young 
women  of  Mexico,  there  are  many  very  beautiful  and  fair;  who.so 
beauty  is  rendered  more  attractive  by  the  sweetness  and  natural 
modesty  of  their  behaviour." 

Their  mental  capacity  wa.^,  without  doubt,  greatly  superior  to  that 
of  the  wilder  i-aees  of  North  America.  Their  architectural  skill 
and  their  profieieney  in  the  meclianic  arts  gave  proof  of  no  small 
measure  of  i,.''  iiuiiy,  industry,  and  enterprise,  and  notwithstanding 
the  ferocious  cj'uelty  and  loathsome  cannibalism  attendant  ujK)n  their 
strange  svstcm  of  religion,  they  evinced,  in  many  respect.s,  a  refine 
ment,  a  moral  purity,  and  an  intuitive  percept!  t  of  the  proprieties 
of  life,  superior  to  that  of  their  European  contemporaries.  A  g 
eral  idea  of  the  national  character  and  customs  can  be  gathered  from 
the  detail  of  the  event*  of  the  conquest 

The  success! -."1  to  the  crown  was  not  entirely  hereditary,  but 
depended  ujx)n  th-:  '*  •ininn  of  four  electors,  from  among  the  nobles, 
who  were  to  dec;  It      .  iv  j  of  t^.e  deceased  monarch's  brothers,  or 


TUK  CONQUEST  AND  HI8T0BY  OF  MIXIOO. 


107 


nephews  should  be  elevated  to  the  vacant  pflice;  a  peculiarity,  so 
far  OS  regards  the  exclusion  of  lineal  desceu  lauta,  uingularly  uniform 
umong  the  aborigines  of  America. 

There  appears  to  have  existed  a  body  of  powerful  nobles,  each 
despotic  within  his  own  district,  who  held  ^teir  eslato:.  of  offices  by 
a  feudal  tenure  of  military  service.  The  king  (originated  all  la  am, 
but  the  chief  magiHtrotes,  or  judges  to  whom  wn  confided  their 
administration,  although  appointed  by  the  crown,  held  olllce  for  life, 
and  from  their  decision  there  was  no  appeal.  The  criminal  code 
was  severe,  ; .  d  (viverely  enforced;  many  oftences  generally  consid- 
ered as  .  «>i  I  .'  >ei  :';  punishable  by  death.  As  far  as  can  be  gathered 
from  tlie  viuoertui  i  occounts  of  the  old  historians,  an  established 
p'-der  i"ii'  :  ,  Hteni  was  observable  in  the  whole  machinery  of  govern- 
Ml    )t,  in  the  .-.oUection  of  revenue,  and  the  administration  of  the  laws. 

i'he  spl'  iidour  of  the  monarch's  court,  with  the  punctilious  eti- 
quette aiiu  wearisome  ceremonial  by  which  he  maintained  his  dig- 
nity, are  described  at  great  length  in  the  early  accounts  of  Mexico. 
No  prince  ever  exacted  or  received  more  obsequious  homage  from 
his  nobles  and  attendants;  and,  as  may  well  be  supposed,  these  sub- 
ordinates were  not  behind-hand  in  ostentation  and  parade  in  the 
presence  of  their  inferiors. 

In  the  Mexican  system  of  religion  and  religious  ceremonial 
were  seen  the  strangest  incongruities  and  contradictions.  In  several 
particulars  most  striking  coincidences  appeared  between  their  form 
of  worship  and  their  code  of  morals,  and  those  of  the  Christian  reli- 
gion, in  hideous  contrast  to  which  stands  out  their  horrible  custom 
of  human  sacrifice  and  cannibalism.  The  extent  to  which  this  was 
practiced  cannot  now  be  correctly  ascertained:  early  computations 
present  such  remarkable  discrepancies  that  we  are  at  a  loss  in  arriving 
at  the  truth,  but  it  is  generally  agreed  tliut  the  annual  number  of 
victims,  about  the  time  of  the  conquest,  must  be  computed  by  thou- 
sands. These  were,  for  the  most  part,  pri-soners  taken  in  war  or 
exacted  from  some  sub<»nlinate  kingdom  or  province,  ns  an  ntone- 
"lent  for  national  oflenocs. 

At  the  celebration  of  any  great  occurrence,  as  the  demise  of  the 
crown,  or  the  dedication  of  a  temple,  immense  numbers  of  prisoners 
were  slaughtered,  and  their  remains  were  piled  in  order  ns  ghastly 
memorials  of  the  event.  It  is  true  that  in  some  instances  the  Spanish 
invaders  may  have  mistaken  an  ordinary  cemetery  for  a  place  ot 
deposit  devoted  exclusively  to  the  victims  of  sacrifice.     A  great 


108 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


Viiricty  of  ceremonials  preceded  the  ordinary  performance  of  this 
religious  rite,  but  the  mode  of  death  was  commonly  the  same.  At  the 
summit  of  the  pyramidal  temple,  where  was  enshrined  the  image  of 
the  deity  to  which  it  was  devoted,  the  victim  was  stretched  upon  a 
large  block  of  stone,  and  there  held  by  the  assistant  priests,  while  the 
chief  official  cut  open  his  breast  with  a  sharp  stone,  and  tore  out 
the  heart. 

The  body  was  afterwards  prepared  for  food,  and  devoured  with 
much  ceremony  at  a  grand  entertainment.  "This  was  not,"  says 
Prescott,  "  the  coarse  repast  of  famished  cannibals,  but  a  banquet 
teeming  with  delicious  beverages  and  delicate  viands,  prepared  with 
art  and  attended  by  both  sexes,  who,  as  we  shall  see  hereafter,  con- 
ducted themselves  with  all  the  decorum  of  civilized  life.  Surely, 
never  were  refinement  and  the  extreme  of  barbarism  brought  so 
closely  in  contact  with  each  other!"  De  Solis  speaks  of  the  "Rites 
and  Ceremonies  of  these  miserable  Heathens,"  as  "shocking  aid 
horrible  both  to  Reason  and  Nature — incongruous,  stupid  Absurdi- 
ties, which  seemed  altogether  incompatible  with  the  Regularity  and 
admirable  Oeconomy  which  was  observed  in  the  other  parts  of  that 
government;  and  would  scarce  be  believed,  were  not  Histories  full 
of  Examples  of  the  like  Weaknesses  and  Errors  of  Human  Capacities 
in  other  Nations,  who  are  no  less  blind,  tho'  in  Parts  of  the  World 
where  they  have  the  Means  of  being  more  enlighten'd." 

The  Aztecs  had  no  syttem  of  writing,  except  by  the  hieroglyphic 
paintings  and  symbols  so  generally  adopted  by  a  semi-barbarous 
peojtle.  These  were  executed  upon  skins,  cotton  cloth,  or  a  species 
of  paper;  and  great  numbers  of  books  and  rolls  containing  tho 
records  of  the  empire  were  carefully  preserved,  until  they  were  mostly 
involved  in  the  universal  destruction  consequent  upon  the  success  of 
the  Spaniards.  Those  which  still  exist  have  been  subjected  to  care- 
ful and  critical  investigation,  and  although  the  key  to  most  of  them 
is  lost,  probably  beyond  hope  of  recovery,  some  light  has  been  thrown 
upon  Mexican  history  and  civilization  by  the  rude  devices  whose 
meaning  has  been  partially  deciphered. 

The  astronomical  attainments  of  the  natives  were  extremely  limited ; 
so  much  so  as  to  excite  surprise  when  compared  with  the  wonderful 
accuracy  of  their  chronological  cycles.  They  had  devised  a  system 
of  computation  by  whieh  the  length  of  the  year  was  so  precisely 
defined  that,  according  to  Prescott,  "more  than  five  centuries  must 


C'la'^se  before  the  loss  of  an  entire  dav 


tUr 


UO  ill  /  1 1  Wf  1 1  1  I  I 


Till:  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


109 


precision  displayed  by  the  Aztecs,  or,  perhaps,  by  their  more  pol- 
ished Toltec  predecessors,  in  these  computations,  8(f  difficult  as  to 
have  baffled,  till  a  comparatively  recent  period,  the  most  enlightened 
nations  of  Christendom." 

In  the  mechanic  arts  they  had  made  great  proficiency;  labouring 
under  the  disadvantage  of  entire  ignorance  of  the  use  of  iron,  and 
compelled  to  resort  to  an  alloy  of  copper,  tin,  &c.,  they  erected  'such 
massive  edifices  of  hewn  stone  as  to  astonish  those  familiar  with  the 
magnificent  monuments  of  the  old  world.  Enormous  masses  of  rock 
were  transported  from  quarries  many  miles  distant  from  the  edifices 
for  whose  construction  they  were  prepared,  and  this  without  the  aid 
of  beasts  of  burden.  To  the  skill  of  the  Mexican  goldsmiths  and 
lapidaries  the  contemporary  artisans  of  Europe  bore  witness,  con- 
fessing their  own  inferiority  in  certain  branches  of  fhe  profession. 
The  extraordinary  beauty  of  workmanship  which  enhanced  the  value 
of  their  plundered  treasures,  excited  admiration  even  at  the  court 
of  Spain. 

Although  polygamy  was  allowed,  the  tie  of  marriage  was  deemed 
as  sacred  among  the  Aztecs  as  with  the  Christian  nations  of  Europe, 
and  the  women  were  generally  treated  with  a  respect  and  tenderness 
unknown  in  a  purely  barbarous  community.  Slavery  was  one  of 
the  established  institutions  of  the  country,  but  the  master  was  not 
allowed  an  absolute  power  over  the  servant,  whose  privileges  were 
secured  by  many  restrictive  provisions  of  the  laws.  It  seems  that 
no  small  number  of  those  who  occupied  this  inferior  position  entered 
upon  it  voluntarily  for  the  sake  of  securing  a  maintenance,  and 
among  the  poor,  many  relieved  themselves  from  the  burden  of  sup- 
porting a  family  by  a  sale  of  their  children. 

The  trade  of  the  country  was  carried  on  altogether  by  travelling 
merchants — a  class  of  podlers  occupying  a  position  very  different 
from  that  of  the  present  day.  The  goods  were  borne  upon  the  backs 
of  slaves,  themselves  a  most  important  portion  of  the  investment. 
Gold-dust,  cacao-nuts,  and  a  species  of  tin  coin  served  as  the  medium 
of  currency;  but  trading  operations  were  extensively  conducted 
by  barter  and  exchange.  Very  numerous  articles  of  luxury  and 
comfort — such  as  rich  cloths,  feather-work,  maimfacturcs  from  the 
precious  metals,  &.c. — were  in  universal  use  among  the  wealthier 
members  of  society.  The  variety  and  excellence  of  their  cookery, 
and  the  sumptuous  display  at  their  feasta  and  entertainments,  form  a 
copious  theme  for  the  Spanish  narrators.     Drinking  and  smoking 


wmm- 


ft: 


110 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


were  luxuries  generally  indulged  in,  but  the  intemperate  use  of  even 
the  mild  fermented  liquor  which  they  manufactured  was  guarded 
against  by  severe  penalties.  These  restrictions  were,  however,  con- 
fined to  the  young. 

Among  the  Mexican  Indian  population  of  the  present  day  we  look 
in  vain  for  the  national  pride,  ferocity,  energy,  and  ingenuity  of  their 
ancestors.  Centuries  of  slavery  and  subordination  to  the  European 
have  denationalized  them,  and  certain  physical  peculiarities  alone 
remain  to  mark  them  as  the  descendants  of  the  wonderful  people 
whose  habits  we  have  thus  briefly  sketched* 


uJuAiXJaXi     JtJtX* 


THE  EMPEROE  MONTEZUMA. — LANDING  OP  THE  SPANIARDS. — 
THEIR  NEGOTIATION  WITH^MONTEZUMA. — ^HIS  IMPOLICY. — 
SPLENDID  PRESENTS. — CORTES  REVOLTS  AGAINST  VELAS- 
QUEZ.—  FORMS  AN  ALLIANCE  WITH  THE  T0T0NAC8. — 
DESTROYS  THEIR  IDOLS. — SETS  FORTH  FOR  MEXICO. 


The  throne  of  the  Aztec  empire,  at  this  time,  was  held  by  Mon- 
tezuma, renowned,  beyond  any  other  of  the  native  American  race, 
for  a  life  marked  by  strange  vicissitudes  and  a  most  melancholy  fate. 
On  the  decease  of  his  uncle,  in  1502,  he  had  been  elected  to  the 
sovereignty  in  acknowledgment  of  his  services  in  war  and  his  devo- 
tion to  the  national  theology — a  theology  whose  mystical  tenets  and 
sanguinary  rites  were  intimately  blended  with  the  entire  system  of 
Mexican  government  and  polity.  His  name,  signifying  the  "sad" 
or  "severe,''  was  derived  from  the  grave  and  melancholy  expression 
of  his  countciiance,  an  expression  natural  enough  to  the  earnest 
devotee  of  a  religion  so  dark  and  cruel.  The  military  genius  of  the 
young  emperor  soon  extended  his  sway  over  wider  regions  of  Ana- 
huac*  than  had  been  ruled  by  the  greatest  of  his  predecessors;  and 
the  justice  of  his  administration,  and  the  great  public  improvement.^ 
uliich  he  planned,  equally  evinced  his  talents  for  policy  and  gov- 

•  ThiH  wiui  the  native  iippelltttion  of  those  extensive  n-gions  since  included  und*-- 

tJM-  title  of  New  SlMtiH: 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTOBT  OF  MEXICO. 


Ill 


ernment.  But  his  domains,  continually  extended  by  conquest,  liad 
grown  so  great,  and  were  composed  of  such  heterogeneous  materials, 
as  to  require  a  large  standing  army  and  the  frequent  repression  of 
insurrections;  and  the  Aztec  empire,  not  yet  consolidated  by  time, 
and  containing  the  elements  of  disorder  within,  was  ill  fitted  to  with- 
stand any  vigorous  assault  from  without. 

On  the  21st  of  April,  1519,  the  Spanish  army  disembarked  on  a 
sandy  beach,  the  site  of  the  present  Vera  Cruz,  and  the  general 
presently  received  a  visit  from  Teuhtile,  the  chief  cacique  of  the 
adjoining  region.  Ceremonious  courtesies  were  interchanged,  and 
Cortes  informed  his  visitor,  that  the  great  king  of  Spain  had  dis- 
patched him  to  the  country  with  presents  and  a  message  for  its  sov- 
ereign. The  chief  expressed  surprise  on  hearing  that  there  was 
another  monarch  equal  in  power  to  his  master,  the  great  Montezuma, 
but  promised  his  good  offices,  and  bestowed  on  the  strangers  splendid 
.resents,  beautifully  wrought  in  gold  and  other  materials.  A  very 
;)ultry  offering,  in  comparison,  was  all  that  the  Spaniards  could  dis- 
patch to  the  court  of  Mexico;  and  with  it  Teuhtile  sent  accurate 
pictures,  drawn  and  coloured  by  native  artists,  of  the  ships,  the  can- 
non, the  horses,  and  the  strangers  themselves,  for  the  inspection  of 
the  emperor. 

The  visit  of  Grijalva,  faithfully  reported  by  the  caciques  whom 
he  encountered,  had  produced  a  deep  and  alarming  impression  on 
the  mind  of  Montezuma.  There  was  an  ancient  prediction,  firmly 
believed  in  Anahuac,  that  Quetzalcoatl,  the  founder  of  the  Aztec 
religion  and  government,  a  deity  of  fair  complexion  and  flowing 
board,  should  one  day  return  from  his  long  sojourn  in  the  east,  and 
resume  possession  of  his  empire.  Many  singular  portents  and  pro- 
digies of  nature  had  affected  the  mind  of  the  sovereign;  and  it  was 
by  his  express  orders  that,  on  the  landing  of  the  second  company  of 
strangers,  ricli  gifts  had  been  bestowed  on  them,  and  the  sedulous 
attendance  of  a  multitude  of  natives  had  ministered  to  their  wants. 
The  news  of  their  coming  was  borne  rapidly  to  court,  and  the  per- 
plexed monarch,  despite  the  opposition  of  his  wisest  councillors,  re- 
solved to  send  them  a  magnificent  offering,  but  to  forbid  their  approach 
to  his  city,  ^o  course  of  action  could  have  been  devised  more  apt 
to  stimulate  their  rapacity,  curiosity,  and  ambition,  to  the  utmost. ' 

The  imperial  capital  of  Tcnoclititlan,  or  ^^exico,  lay  seventy  leagues 
from  the  coast;  yet  eight  daj's  after  the  news  was  dispatched  from 
"\\'r;i  Cruz,  aii  embassy  from  tlie  Aztec  sovereign,  accompanied  by 


•"?' . 


^ 


112 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UI6T0BT. 


a  hundred  slaves,  bearing  splendid  presents,  entered  the  Spanish 
camp.  The  beauty  and  value  of  these  royal  gifts  are  described  in 
glowing  terms  by  contemporary  writers,  especially  those  who  beheld 
them.  They  consisted  of  fabrics  admirably  worked  in  cotton  and 
variegated  feathers,  mingled  with  gems;  of  gold  and  silver  skilfully 
wrought  into  the  shape  of  animals,  &c. ;  and  especially  of  a  great 
golden  sun,  as  large  as  a  carriage-wheel,  beautifully  fashioned,  and 
worth,  according  to  the  value  of  the  metal  in  that  day,  nearly  a 
quarter  of  a  million  dollars  of  the  present  currency.  A  courteous 
message  was  likewise  delivered  to  the  strangers,  declining  a  visit, 
and  politely  suggesting  their  return. 

Cortes,  with  mingled  exultation  and  disappointment,  received  the 
gifts,  and  the  accompanying  repulse;  but,  with  his  accustomed  per- 
severance, sent  by  the  returning  ambassadors  a  new  present  (miser- 
ably small  compared  with  the  magnificent  offerings  of  the  emperor) 
and  a  renewed  request  for  permission  to  visit  the  court.  A  positive 
denial,  softened,  however,  by  additional  presents,  was  returned ;  and 
the  Spanish  leader,  turning  to  his  officers,  said  coldly,  "Truly  this  is 
a  great  monarch  and  a  rich — by  God's  permission  we  must  see  him." 

Before  the  next  morning  the  Spanish  camp  was  entirely  deserted 
by  the  Indians.  Thirty  of  his  people,  encamped  on  a  spot,  reeking, 
even  at  the  present  day,  with  pestilence  and  death,  had  already  per- 
ished ;  and  Cortes  resolved  to  seek  out  a  more  favourable  locality. 
To  his  great  joy,  an  embassy  presently  arrived  from  the  Totonacs, 
a  powerful  tribe  lately  subdued  by  the  Aztecs,  inviting  him  to  visit 
their  capital  of  Cempoalla.  An  important  and  hazardous  experi- 
ment, however,  was  first  to  be  attempted. 

Whatever  good  faith  to  his  patron  and  coadjutor  he  might  have 
cherished  at  the  commencement  of  the  enterprise,  had  been  over- 
come by  the  value  of  the  anticipated  prize;  and  he  had  resolved  to 
disown  even  a  nominal  allegiance  to  Velasquez  in  the  wealthy  region 
which  he  proposed  to  conquer.  The  soldiers,  by  his  machinations, 
were  induced  to  throng  around  his  tent,  and  demand  tlie  foundation 
of  a  settlement.  With  affected  reluctance,  he  assented,  and,  having 
formally  resigned  his  commission  received  from  the  governor,  was 
forthwith  elected  (by  the  officers  and  magistrates  of  his  own  appoint- 
ment) as  Captain-General  of  the  new  colony  of  Vera  Cruz.  The 
immediate  iriends  and  partisans  of  Valaaquez,  to  quiet  their  indig- 
nant remonstrances,  were  laid  in  irons;  and,  ere  long,  singular  to 


miuiK, 


they  joined  heartily 


support! !!g  the  authority  of  Cortes. 


-^ 


H  K  It  JWI  .V  /JO     CO  /.  '/■  K  S, 
THE    c  o  N  Q  L  E  n  o  «     or     m  r.  x  i  c-  o . 
B'>I,\  striliilBEK  10,  l«»i  TOOK  TIIK  CM-y  Of  MKXK'o  BV  STOKM,  At  Ul  ST  Vi.  1V1 

niti)  DKci;\iiii;i<  2.   imi 


THE   C0NU\JE8T   AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


113 


That  active  commander,  secure  in  his  new  authority,  now  marched 
with  all  his  troops  to  Cempoalla.  At  this  place,  which  contained 
about  thirty  thousand  inhabitants,  the  Spaniards  met  with  the  most 
friendly  and  hospitable  reception,  and  the  heart  of  their  leader 
throbbed  high  at  the  prospect  of  powerful  native  assistance  in  hia 
ambitious  schemes.  He  explained  to  the  Cempoallan  chieftain,  a 
portly  dignitary,  the  power  of  his  master  the  emperor,  and  his  zeal 
for  the  salvation  of  souls,  and  went  at  considerable  length  into  a 
doctrinal  disquisition  on  the  holy  faith.  "As  soon  as  the  fat  cacique 
had  heard  him  out,"  says  a  witness,  "heaving  a  deep  sigh,  he  com- 
plained bitterjly  of  Montezuma  and  his  officers,  saying  that  having 
been  lately  compelled  to  submit  to  the  yoke  of  that  monarch,  he 
had  seized  all  his  gold,  and  now  held  him  completely  enthralled." 

This  disaffection  promised  well;  but  on  the  following  day,  the 
arrival  of  five  officers  from  the  court  of  Montezuma  filled  the  Toto- 
nacs  with  dismay.  Trembling  with  fear,  all  hastened  to  receive  the 
imperial  emissaries,  who  passed  to  their  quarters  with  extraordinary 
state,  not  deigning  to  cast  a  look  on  the  Spaniards.  They  were  ele- 
gantly attired,  and  each  held  in  his  hand  a  nosegay,  which  he  occa- 
sionally smelt  at — a  curious  piece  of  tyrannic  foppery,  considering 
their  errand.  This  was  nothing  less  than  to  demand  twenty  young 
people  for  sacrifice  to  their  gods,  in  expiation  of  the  offence  of  receiv- 
ing the  Spaniards.  But  such  was  the  influence  already  acquired  by 
Cortes,  that  the  Totonacs,  at  his  command,  forthwith  put  these  high 
ambassadors  in  the  stocks — the  Spanish  commander,  by  artful  pol- 
icy, saving  their  lives,  and  secretly  dispatching  them  home  to  pro- 
pitiate the  eijiperor. 

The  Totonacs,  fully  committed  in  rebellion,  now  took  oath  of 
allegiance  to  the  Spanish  sovereign;  and  a  town  called  Villa  Rica 
de  la  Vera  Cruz  (at  some  distance  from  the  present  city  of  that 
name)  was  founded  by  the  Spaniards.  A  fresh  embassy,  with  splen- 
did presents,  soon  arrived  from  Montezuma,  and  Cortes,  having  stu- 
diously displayed  to  the  envoys  the  terrors  of  European  warfare, 
ri;it»!rut(Hl  his  intention  of  visiting  their  master. 

Scandalized  at  the  idolatrous  rites  and  human  sacrifices  practised  by 
his  allies,  the  Spanish  general  made  fierce  remonstrance.  Inflamed 
with  crusading  zeal,  ho  suddenly  issued  orders  for  the  immediate 
destruction  of  the  idols — a  work  zealously  completed  by  his  men,  to 
the  horror  of  their  worshijipers.  The  caciques  who  resisted  were 
seized,  and  Cortes  made  a  long  sennou  to  the  ajrhast  multitude, 
Vol.  III.— 8 


■I'M 


lU 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


assuring  them  of  the  protection  of  the  Virgin,  "  with  many  other 
good  and  holy  reasons  arid  arguments,  which  could  not  be  better 
expressed  by  any  one,  and  all  which  the  people  listened  to  with 
much  attention."  Mass  was  performed,  and  all  the  principal  persons 
of  the  neighbourhood,  with  respectful,  but,  no  doubt,  with  greatly- 
puzzled  attention,  participated  in  the  ceremony.  To  propitiate  the 
crown,  and  to  secure  its  protection  against  the  anticipated  vengeance 
of  Velasquez,  Cortes  now  resolved  to  dispatch  the  whole  of  the  splen- 
did  presents  of  Montezuma  as  an  offering  to  the  emperor  (Charles  V.), 
and,  by  his  almost-unbounded  influence  with  the  soldiery,  prevailed 
on  them  to  relinquish  their  share  of  the  treasure.  A  letter,  entreat- 
ing a  confirmation  of  his  authority,  seconded  by  the  petitions  of  tho 
whole  army,  was  written ;  and,  with  wonderful  audacity,  he  assured 
the  emperor  that  in  a  brief  time  the  Aztec  sovereign  should  be  made 
to  own  his  sway,  or,  dead  or  alive,  be  placed  at  his  disposal.  On  the 
26th  of  July,  a  vessel,  bearing  the  treasure  and  these  momentous 
tidings,  was  dispatched  to  Spain;  but,  by  the  indiscretion  of  her 
commander,  in  touching  at  Cuba,  Velasquez  became  informed  of  the 
whole  proceedings.  With  indescribable  rage  and  fury,  he  set  to 
work  to  prepare  a  fresh  expedition  for  the  purpose  of  reducing  his 
refractory  officer,  and  gaining  possession  of  the  wealthy  realms 
of  Mexico. 

A  few  malcontents  in  the  army  had  plotted  to  seize  a  vessel  and 
return  to  the  island.  This  piece  of  defection  was  punished  with 
merciless  severity;  and,  to  guard  against  any  renewal  of  the  attempt, 
Cortes  now  took  the  extraordinary  resolution  of  destroying  his  fleet. 
Accordingly,  all  except  one  small  vessel  were  privately  scuttled  and 
sunk.  The  alarm  and  indignation  of  the  soldiers  were  allayed,  and 
their  courage  inflamed  by  a  harangue  so  stirring  and  eloquent,  that, 
when  it  was  finished,  they  cried  eagerl}',  "To  Mexico!  to  Mexico!" 
All,  indeed,  could  see  that  there  was  no  chance  of  drawing  back,  and 
that  the  only  hope  of  safety  itself  lay  in  victory  and  conquest. 
Active  preparations  were  now  made  for  the  expected  campaign. 
Juan  de  Escalente,  a  sure  friend  of  the  general's,  was  left  in  conimaml 
of  a  small  garrison  at  Cempoalla.  With  a  little  more  than  four  hun- 
dred Spaniards  and  two  thousand  Totonaes,  on  the  16th  of  August, 
1519,  Cortes  set  forth  on  the  most  wonderful  of  martial  enterprises 
recorded  in  history — the  March  to  Mexico. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTOBY    OF  MBXIOO. 


UP 


n.  JH  i    I   Jh  Jri,     IV. 


'C^' 

M 


THE  MARCH  TOWARD  MEXICO, — SPIRITED  RESISTANCE  OF  THE 
TLA8CALANS SUCCESS  OF  THE  SPANIARDS. — THEIR  DIS- 
COURAGEMENTS.— FIRMNESS    OF    CORTES, — SUBMISSION 
OF  THE  TLASCALANS. — SINGULAR  CHANGE  OF  FEELING. 
— DUPLICITY  aF  CORTES.  —  HIS  ZEAL  FOR  CONVERSION. 


Emkroing  from  the  tierra  caliente,  the  invaders  ascended  to  the 
great  plateau,  and  were  received  in  a  friendly  manner  at  the  cities 
of  Jalapa  and  Naulinco,  allies  of  the  Totonacs.  At  Tlatlauqnitepec, 
which  they  reached  after  several  days  of  wearisome  march,  were 
many  teocallies  or  mound-temples,  and  in  the  vicinity  were  a  vast 
uumber  of  skeletons,  regularly  arranged,  perhaps  those  of  the  victims 
of  sacrifice.  The  cacique  of  this  city,  dreading  the  anger  of  his 
sovereign,  gave  them  a  cool  reception,  and  declined  imparting  to 
them  any  gold.  lie  added,  however,  "should  he"  (Montezuma) 
"command  it,  my  gold,  my  person,  and  all  that  I  possess,  shall  be 
at  your  disposal."  Disappointed  in  his  hopes  of  treasure,  the  gen- 
eral's zeal  for  conversion  seems  to  have  received  a  sudden  stimulus, 
for,  uplifting  his  voice,  he  demanded  of  all  present  to  renounce  their 
idolatries,  and  would  have  planted  the  cross  at  once,  but  for  the 
remonstrances  of  the  reverend  Father  Olmedo,  the  chaplain  of  the 
expedition,  who,  to  his  honour,  often  interfered  in  behalf  of  the 
natives,  and  who  now  assured  him  that  the  Ume  was  unpropitious 
for  making  proselytes. 

By  advice  of  his  Totonac  allies,  Cortes  now  took  up  his  march 
for  Tltiscala,  an  independent  republic,  which,  for  many  ages,  had  suc- 
cessfully stemmed  the  tide  of  Aztec  conquest.  Though  surrounded 
on  all  sides  by  the  territories  of  the  Mexican  sovereigns,  these  people, 
from  the  natural  fertility  of  their  country,  and  the  strength  of  its 
position,  had  been  enabled  to  set  the  conquerors  of  Anahuac  at  defi- 
ance. In  their  warlike  habits,  and  in  the  deadly  enmity  which  they 
cherished  toward  the  Aztecs,  the  general  trusted  to  find  efficient  alli- 
ance and  a.s.sistance  in  his  ambitious  schemes.  lie  accordingly  sent  an 
Indian  embassy,  with  a  letter  in  Spanish,  desiring  a  friendly  interview. 

On  coming  to  their  territory,  the  invaders  were  surprised  to  find 
it  jiii'tected  by  a  massive  wall  of  rnaaOMry,  built  between  two  mount- 


11(] 


THE  PKOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  llISTUiiV. 


aiiis,  and  having  but  a  single  entrance,  curiously  constructed  fi)r 
defence.  No  one,  however,  appeared  to  oppose  them,  and  the  little 
nmiy,  defiling  through  the  gate-way,  pushed  on  toward  the  capital. 
Their  hopes  of  a  friendly  reception  were  soon  grievously  disappointed. 
A  force  of  three  thousand  Tlascalans  appeared  to  dif^pute  their  pass- 
age, and  though  compelled  to  give  ground  before  the  discharge  of 
artillery  and  the  charge  of  cavalry,  retreated  in  good  order.  On  the 
next  day  (September  2d)  a  fresh  body  of  the  enemy  appeared,  who, 
to  a  formal  protest,  recorded  as  usual  by  a  notary,  replied  oidy  with 
a  shower  of  missiles.  A  fight  commenced,  and  the  Indians,  artfully 
retreating,  decoyed  their  invaders  into  a  narrow  defile,  where  Xicoten- 
catl,  the  greatest  general  of  Tlascala,  with  an  army  of  many  thouamd 
warriors,  was  waiting  to  receive  them. 

Amid  the  hideous  roar  of  barbarian  drums,  the  shrill  notes  of  flutes, 
and  a  terrific  outbreak  of  cries  and  whistlings,  the  little  army  of 
Cortes  engaged  the  enemy — his  Indian  allies,  now  three  thousand 
in  number,  standing  stoutly  by  him.  Destruction,  indeed,  seemed 
almost  inevitable.  "I  see  nothing  but  death  before  us,"  stiid  one  of 
tlie  chiefs;  "we  shall  never  get  through  the  pass  alive."  But  the 
little  body  of  cavalry,  Cortes  at  their  head,  charging  with  the  despe- 
ration of  men  whose  lives  were  at  stake,  at  length  cleared  a  way  for 
the  artillery,  which  i)layed  with  terrible  eftect  on  the  crowded  ranks 
of  the  enemy.  Ei  ht  of  the  bravest  Tlascalan  chiefs  and  , .  great 
number  of  their  f  ilowers  fell,  and  Xicotencatl,  discouraged,  uc  last 
drew  off  his  forces.  The  Spaniards  retreated,  for  safe  encampment, 
to  an  eminence  called  the  "Hill  of  Tzompach,"  on  which  stood  a 
temple,  the  ruins  of  whicli  yet  remain.  Their  loss  had  been  small, 
owing  to  the  anxiety  of  the  enemy  to  take  them  alive  for  sacrifice; 
but  an  abundance  of  cruel  wounds  were  distributed  among  them, 
which,  with  the  revolting  aid  of  a  chirurgery  common  in  these  wars, 
thev  dressed  with  the  fat  of  the  Indians  who  had  fallen. 

Overtures  of  peace,  which  Cortes  now  made  to  the  Tla-scalans, 
were  fiercely  and  peremptorily  rejected  ;  and  news  came  that  Xicoten- 
catl, with  fifty  thousand  men,  was  awaiting  the  invaders  on  the  road 
to  Tlascahu  On  hearing  these  portentous  tidings,  says  the  honest 
chronicler,  "being  but  mortals,  and  like  all  others  fearing  death, 
we  prepared  for  battle  by  confessing  to  our  reverend  fathers,  who 
were  occupied  during  the  whole  night  in  that  holy  oflicc."  On  the 
morning  of  SeptemlKT  ir)th,  the  little  host,  resolved  on  conc^uest  or 
death,  again  took  the  road  to  Tlascala. 


I  'W 


ff 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY    OF  MEXICO. 


117 


The  Indian  army,  drawn  up  in  a  vast  meadow,  waa  awaiting  it  at 
no  great  distance.     It  formed  a  splendid  sight,  many  of  .the  warriors 
being  decorated  with  armour  of  gold  and  silver,  and  the  whole  array 
being  gorgeous  with  mantles  of  feather-work  and  the  fluttering  of 
innumerable  standards.   •  Their  weapons  were  javelins,  darts,  and 
arrows,  headed  with  copper  or  sharp  stones — skilfully  and  elegantly 
made,  but  feeble  and  inefficient  in  cotnjjarison  with  the  artillery,  the 
muskets,  and  the  sabres  of  their  pjuropean  foes.     Still,  so  determined 
was  their  onset,  that  by  mere  force  of  numbers,  the  Spaniards  were 
at  first  driven  back  in  confusion.     By  a  desperate  use  of  their  swords, 
room  was  finally  cleared  for  the  artillery,  and  great  havoc  was  mado 
among  the  dense  ranks  of  the  assailants.     The  cavalry,  under  Cor- 
tes, charged  fiercely  wherever  they  had  space,  and  drove  back  the 
iissailants  with  much  slaughter.     Again  and  again,  with  terrible 
lews,  did  the  Tlascalans  close  around  the  little  army  of  Spaniards 
and  Totonacs;    and,  but  for  dis.«en8ion  among  themselves,  would, 
probably,  by  their  overwhelming  superiority  of  numbers,  have  car- 
ried the  day.    But  two  powerful  chiefs,  disagreeing  with  Xicotencatl, 
retreated  with  their  respective  forces;  and  that  general,  after  a  con- 
test of  four  hours,  during  which  he  had  displayed  the  most  chival- 
rous courage,  was  fain  to  draw  off  the  remainder  of  his  command. 
The  Spaniards,   exhausted  with  wounds  and  fatigue,  retreated  to 
Tzompach,  where  they  secretly  buried  in  a  subterranean  vault  the 
small  number  of  their  own  soldiers  that  had  fallen. 

It  was  contrary  to  the  usu.al  custom  of  the  natives  of  Anahuac 
to  war  by  night;  yet,  stimulated  by  the  encouragement  of  their  priests 
and  wizards,  who  assured  them  that  the  strangers  were  "Children  of 
the  Sun,"  and  dependent  on  that  luminary  for  strength  and  protec- 
tion, the  defeated  army  made  a  midnight  assault  on  the  Spanish 
camp.  But  these  hardy  adventurers,  sleeping,  as  usual,  on  their 
arms,  were  instantly  on  the  alert,  and  repulsed  with  considerable 
loss  the  advancing  assailants — who,  however,  con.soled  themselves 
by  sacrificing  two  of  their  unreliabl'j  wizards.  The  Tlascalan  coun- 
cil would  now  have  made  peace,  and  for  that  purpose  dispatched  to 
the  Christi.an  camp  an  embassy  of  their  own — which,  however,  was 
intercepted  on  the  way  by  Xicotencatl,  «ager  to  avenge  the  success- 
ive defeats  which  he  had  encountered.  The  Spaniards  themselves, 
fiftv-five  of  whom  had  perished  since  leaving  Vera  Cruz,  were  heart- 
ily wearied  of  fighting  and  privation.  They  strongly  remonstraterl 
with  Cortes  against  attempting  to  reach  Mexico,  the  name  of  w  hich 


i 


lid 


TlIK  TKUPLE'S    BUUK   OF  IIISTOKY. 


TIIK 


Iiad  iMJCOtne  a  common  jest  in  tlie  army,  or  even  Tluucula.  But 
their  indomitable  comtuundor,  in  u  stern  and  oloqucut  harangue, 
revived  their  8j)irits,  and  assured  them  of  the  divine  protection. 
"  Wherever  we  have  come,"  ho  said,  "  we  liavo  preached  to  the  igno- 
rant natives  the  doctrines  of  our  Ijoly  faith;  wherefore  I  trust  we 
shall  still  receive  the  divine  assistance,  and  that  of  my  patron,  St. 
IVtor;  *  #  «  m)(j  jy,  ^Q  \^-|mt  you  say  of  losses,  deaths 
and  fatii^'ucs,  such  is  the  fortune  of  war,  and  we  did  not  come  hero 
in  search  of  paatimes  and  uniuscments."  Any  further  remonstrances 
he  cut  short  by  quoting  from  an  old  song,  that  "it  was  better  to  die 
at  once  than  to  live  disjionoured,"  and  by  the  firmness  of  his  character, 
and  the  vehemence  of  his  tone,  bore  down  all  opposition. 

A  large  embassy  which  Xicotencatl  had  dispatched  to  the  Span- 
ish camp,  being  discovered  to  be  spies,  were  dismissed  with  cruel 
mutilation;  and  that  commander,  suddenly  abandoning  his  hopes 
of  resistance,  l)etook  hiin.self,  with  the  intercepted  envoys,  to  the 
j)rescnce  of  the  invaders.  He  took  on  himself  the  entire  reponsi- 
bility  of  the  war,  and  tendered  the  submission  of  his  countrymen. 
Almo-st  at  the  same  time  a  new  embassy,  of  five  nobles,  with  two 
hundred  attendants,  bearing  magnificent  presents,  arrived  from  Mon- 
tezuma. That  unhapjjy  8<jvereign  now  offered  to  furnish  regular 
tribute  to  the  king  of  Spain,  if  the  dreaded  strangers  would  forego 
their  intended  march  to  his  capital — an  impolitic  overture,  which 
only  stimulated  the  hojHJS  and  ambition  of  Cortes,  already  fortified 
by  the  enmity  which  he  observed  to  prevail  l)etween  the  two  embas- 
sies. "  I  was  not  a  little  pleased,"  he  writes  to  the  emperor  (Charles 
V.)  "on  seeing  their  want  of  harmony,  as  it  seemed  favourable  to  my 
designs,  and  would  enable  me  to  bring  them  the  more  easily  into 
subjection,  according  to  the  old  saying  ^  l)e  monte,^  kc.  I  likewise 
applied  to  this  c.-ise  the  authority  of  the  Evangelist,  who  says,  'F^vcry 
kingdom  divided  against  itself  shall  Ihj  rendere<l  desolate,'  and  I 
dissembled  with  both  parties" — an  avowal  of  complacent  duplicity 
bardly  to  \)c  paralleled  even  in  private  diplomatic  correspondence. 

On  the  23d  of  Stiptembcr,  a  day  still  ob.><ervcd  as  a  festival  in  that 
city,  the  Spanish  arniy  entered  Tlascala.  The  inhabitants,  with  a 
strange  revulsion  of  fcolingj  thronged  around  it,  covering  man  and 
horse  with  fresh  roses,  and  exhibiting  every  token  of  the  heartiest 
welcome.  This  extraordinary  change  was  doubtless  due  to  the 
respect  whicli  valour  and  superior  power  always  commands  from  a 
half-civilized  race,  and  also  to  their  hope  of  a  resistless  ally  in  war 


against  tlicir 
largo  and  \k 
public  days, 
refinement,  s 
the  strangers 
the  advancei 
garr  in  the  si 
That  zealc 
entered  on  t 
before  them 
Son  in  her  ai 
ing  nature,  o 
"whereas,"  h 
v/hicli  are  de 
there  to  \)urr 
ever,  was  an 
the  release  ( 
being  of  littl 
rites,  whcnoA 


8UBMI88I0> 

— PLOT    1)1 

THE  MAR  I 

T  K  /  II M  A . 

WITH  T 

Thkott.h 
Aztec  rule,  ( 
tendering  sii 
ancient  and 
Mecca  of  th( 
and  other  n 
mind.  "Th 
sage,"  says 
tvhatevn:" 


TIIK  C0N(iUE8T  AND  HISTORY   OF   MKXICO. 


Ill) 


against  their  ancient  cneinius,  tlio  AztecM.  TVio  city  ])rovcd  to  be 
largo  and  |)Oj)u1ouh — thirty  tlioiiHand  persons,  it  is  said,  being,  on 
public  days,  a8acnd)led  in  the  market-place;  and  many  evidences  of 
refinement,  such  as  baths  and  a  police,  awakened  the  admiration  of 
the  strangers.  Cortes,  in  his  dispatches,  adduces  an  odd  prfxjf  of 
the  advancement  of  the  nati  es  of  Now  Spain:  "There  were  beg- 
garr  in  tlio  streets,"  ho  says,  "as  among  any  civilized  people." 

That  zealous  polemic,  with  his  accustomed  promptitude,  at  onco 
entered  on  the  work  of  converting  his  new  allies.  Ilolding  up 
before  thorn  "a  beauteous  image  of  our  Lady,  with  her  precious 
Son  in  her  arms,"  ho  made  a  long  discourse,  no  doubt  of  an  edify- 
ing nature,  on  the  Christian  faith,  and  the  rewards  of  its  votaries — 
"whereas,"  he  continued,  "by  persisting  in  the  worship  of  your  idols, 
v/hich  are  devils,  you  will  bo  drawn  by  them  into  their  infernal  pit, 
there  to  burn  eternally  in  flames  of  fire."  All  ho  could  obtain,  how- 
ever, was  an  assent  to  the  display  and  exercise  of  his  own  faith,  and 
the  release  of  victims  destined  for  sacrifice — the  latter,  however, 
being  of  little  effect,  the  Tlascalans  quietly  perpetrating  their  usual 
rites,  whenever  their  guests  were  out  of  the  way. 


LJuAFxLH    V. 

SUBMISSION  OP  PROVINCES. — CORTES  MARCHES  ON  CIIOI.ULA 

— PLOT    DISCOVERED. M.\S3\CRE   OP   THE   CHOLULANS. 

THE  MARCH  TO  MEXICO  RESUMED. — WEAK  POLICY  OP  MON- 
TEZUMA.—  THE  ENTRANCE  INTO  MEXICO. INTERVIEWS 

WITH  THE  EMPEROR — HIS  GENEROSITY  AND  APP ABILITY. 

TuRounii  fear  of  the  invincible  .strangers,  or  from  liatred  to  the 
Aztec  rule,  einba-ssies  were  now  sent  to  Cortes  from  various  districts, 
tendering  submission  and  tribute.  But  the  people  of  Cholula,  an 
ancient  and  celebrated  city,  the  most  sacred  in  all  Anahuao,  (the 
Mecca  of  the  Mexican  races,)  and  still  famous  for  its  great  pyramid, 
and  other  massive  relics  of  the  Aztec  worship,  were  of  a  different 
mind.  "They  sent  a  very  dry  and  uncourteous  answer  to  our  mes- 
sage," says  the  indignant  Captain  Diaz,  "and  without  any  present 
whatever."     Determined  to  overawe  this  refractory  and  illiberal  com- 


(li 


iU 


«< 


120 


THE   PEOPLE'S   r.()OK   OF   HISTORY. 


imiiiity,  Cortes,  after  a  sojourn  of  three  weeks  in  Tlascala,  accom- 
panied by  six  thousand  warriors  from  that  city,  took  up  his  march 
for  Cholula,  which  hiy  at  no  great  distance.  On  his  arrival,  the  cit- 
izens, with  apparent  readiness,  gave  in  their  submission,  only  request- 
ing that  the  Thuscalans,  witli  whom  they  were  at  feud,  should  encamp 
without  the  city;  but  welcomed  the  Spaniards  with  every  appearance 
of  joy  and  congratulation. 

Nevertheless,  in  a  few  days,  it  was  evident  that  secret  enmity  was 
plotting  their  destruction.  A  sacrifice  to  the  war-god,  including  five 
children,  intimated  some  notable  attempt  of  a  martial  nature;  and 
ere  long,  the  visitors  were  utterly  neglected  by  their  hosts — the  few 
citizens,  whom  they  met  in  the  streets,  drawing  aside,  "with  a  mys- 
terious kind  of  sneer  on  their  faces."  Through  the  agency  of 
Marina,  the  whole  particulars  of  the  plot  were  discovered,  and  Cortca 
resolved  to  make  a  terrible  example  of  the  hostile  city.  Under 
pretext  of  taking  his  leave,  on  the  following  morning  he  assembled 
in  the  great  square  a  large  number  of  the  chiefs  and  citizens.  When 
all  was  re.ad}',  he  suddenly  broke  forth  into  a  fierce  address,  reproach- 
ing them  with  tlu.'ir  treason.  The  caciques  admitted  the  plot,  but  laid 
the  blame  on  Montezuma — with  what  truth  does  not  exactly  appear. 
lie  then  at  once  gave  the  signal  for  slaughter,  and  his  soldiers, 
with  artillery  and  musketry,  committed  a  frightful  massacre  on  the 
multitude  entrapped  within  the  square.  The  TIascalans  also  swarmed 
in,  and  before  the  fury  of  these  ancient  enemies  could  be  stayed,  six 
thousand  of  the  Cholulans  had  peri.shed,  and  the  whole  city  was 
ravaged  and  plundered.  This  terrible  example  of  the  power  and 
vengeance  of  the  Spaniards  struck  dread  throughout  all  Anahuac. 
Montezuma,  trembling  in  his  distant  capital,  again  di.spatched  splen- 
did presents  to  the  victors,  and,  after  a  fortnight  passed  in  the  de- 
vastated city,  elate  with  triumph,  and  strengthened  by,  a  force  of 
six  thousand  of  the  bravest  warriors  of  Tlascala,  they  resumed  the 
march  to  Mexico. 

It  was  useless,  indeed,  to  disguise  from  their  minds  that,  although 
so  far  successful  to  a  degree  unheard  of,  they  were  entering  on  new 
and  terrible  dangers.  Marching  with  constant  wati'hfulne.s.s,  ("the 
l>eard  ever  on  the  shoulder,"  says  one  of  them)  they  gradually 
ascended  the  chain  of  mountains  which  surrounds  the  great  Mexican 
Valley.  Afler  much  suffering  from  fatigue,  and  from  the  cold  air 
of  those  elevated  region.s,  they  attained  the  summit,  and  c;ust  their 
eyes  over  "that  magnificent  prospect,  which,  to -this  day,  charms 


wav,  stretc' 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY    OF   MEXICO. 


121 


every  beholder  into  rapture.  Before  them,  stretching  for  many  a 
league,  and  environed  on  all  sides  by  lofty  mountains,  lay  the  Valley 
of  Mexico — perhaps,  after  that  of  Granada,  the  richest  and  loveliest 
in  the  world.  Clusters  of  glistening  towns  and  villages  surrounded 
the  lakes;  and  far  in  the  distance  lay  that  mighty  city,  the  final 
prize  of  their  adventurous  career."  Alarmed  at  the  evidences  of 
tiie  power  and  population  of  the  empire  into  which  they  were  so 
daringly  intruding,  some  would  fain  have  retreated;  but  Cortes,  with 
words  of  eager  encouragement,  led  them  down  the  mountain.  A 
new  embassy,  with  a  great  present  from  Montezuma,  was  soon  encoun- 
tered, bearing  anew  the  impolitic  offering  of  treasure  and  tribut' , 
if  the  strangers  would  desist  from  their  intended  entrance  into  the 
capital.  But  the  Spanish  leader,  his  ambitious  imagination  now 
thoroughly  inflamed,  resolved,  at  whatever  risk,  to  complete  hia 
intended  enterprise. 

The  unhappy  sovereign  of  the  Aztecs,  whose  dread  was  founded 
more  on  superstitious  fears,  than  any  want  of  independence  or  cour- 
age, now  became  thoroughly  unmanned  by  the  unfavourable  omens 
which  attended  his  sacrifices  and  devotions.  "Of  what  avail  is 
resistance,'"  he  sadly  exclaimed  to  his  council,  *'  when  the  gods  have 
declared  themselves  against  us  I  Yet  I  mourn  most  for  the  old  and 
infirm,  the  women  and  children,  too  feeble  to  fight  or  to  fly.  For 
myself,  and  the  brave  men  around  me,  we  must  bare  our  breasts  to 
the  storm,  and  meet  it  as  we  may."  Determined,  however,  to  leave 
no  means  of  conciliation  untried,  he  dispatched  successively  his 
brother,  his  nephew,  and  other  persons  of  distinction,  to  meet  and 
welcome  the  visitors  at  the  different  stations  on  the  road. 

As  the  Spaniards  approached  the  capital,  their  amazement  in- 
creased hourly,  at  the  sight  of  admirable  buildings  and  causeways, 
massively  constructed  of  hewn  stone,  of  towns  swarming  with  pop- 
ulation, and  all  the  evidences  of  luxury,  taste,  and  refinement.  On 
the  8th  of  November,  1519,  they  defiled  over  that  memorable  cause- 
way, stretching  across  the  lake,  the  site  of  which  still  forms  the 
chief  southern  access  to  the  city  of  Mexico.  On  either  hand,  obscur- 
ing the  surface  of  the  water,  swarmed  a  vast  multitude  of  canoes, 
filltKi  with  curious  spectators  from  all  the  vicinage.  The  Spaniards, 
delayed  by  long  and  ceremonial  courtesies,  advanced  slowly  toward 
tiie  city,  their  minds  as  rajit  with  wonder  as  those  of  the  immense 
throng  which  now  gazed  for  the  first  time  on  the  war-horses,  the 
uitillcry,  the  pale  faces  and  portentous  beards  of  Europe.     They 


^'¥- 


t 


122 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


would  hardly  trust  their  senses.  *'  We  could  compare  it  to  nothing, " 
says  the  old  chronicler,  "but  the  enchanted  scenes  we  had  read  of 
in  Amadis  de  Gaul,  from  the  great  towers  and  temples  and  other 
edifices  which  seemed  to  rise  out  of  the  water.  To  many  of  us  it 
appeared  doubtful  whether  we  were  asleep  or  awake;  »  *  * 
never  yet  did  man  see  or  dream  of  any  thing  equal  to  the  spectacle 
which  appeared  to  our  eyes  on  this  day." 

.  As  the  little  body  of  Spaniards,  followed  by  tlie  Tlascalan  army, 
entered  on  the  great  street  of  the  city,  Montezuma  in  person,  attended 
by  a  great  crowd  of  his  nobles,  appeared  to  welcome  them.  Ue  was 
borne  on  a  splendid  litter,  from  which,  at  the  approach  of  his  visitors, 
he  alighted.  Cortes  also  dismounted,  and  these  two  men,  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Old  World  and  the  New,  each  the  object  of  such 
interest  to  the  other,  stood  face  to  face..  The  emperor,  at  this  time, 
\vas  about  forty  years  of  age,  and  appeared,  says  a  witness  of  the 
scene,  "of  good  stature,  well  proportioned  and  thin;  his  complexion 
was  much  fairer  than  that  of  the  Indians;  he  wore  his  hair  short, 
just  covering  his  ears,  with  very  little  beard,  well- arranged,  thin  and 
black.  His  face  was  rather  long,  with  a  pleasant  countenance  and 
good  eyes.  Gravity  and  good  humour  were  blended  together  when 
he  spoke."  With  the  utmost  courtesy,  and  with  apparent  cordiality, 
he  welcomed  the  strangers  to  his  capital,  and  Cortes  could  not  but 
express,  in  fitting  terms,  his  thanks  for  the  repeated  instances  of 
royal  generosity  which  he  had  so  often  experienced. 

After  a  brief  interview,  the  Spaniards  and  their  allies  were  con- 
ducted through  an  immense  multitude,  to  their  destined  quarters, 
in  a  great  palace  built  by  the  emperor's  father  Axayacatl.  Every 
terrace  and  housetop  was  crowded  with  human  beings,  gazing  with 
insatiate  curiosity  on  the  strangers,  and  marvelling  at  the  entrance 
of  a  great  army  of  their  hereditary  foes.  Montezuma  was  already 
in  the  court-yard,  waiting  their  arrival.  He  hung  a  massive  chain 
of  gold  around  the  neck  of  Cortes,  repeated  his  welcome,  and  then, 
with  refined  civility,  left  him  to  repose.  But  that  wary  general 
turned  his  first  attention  to  fortiiying  the  palace,  and  to  planting 
cannon  for  itH  defence,  with  every  precaution  against  a  surprise. 
"Such  was  the  entrance  of  this  little  band,  animated  by  an  invinci- 
ble hardihood  into  the  renowned  Tenochtillan* — the  fuircitt  and 
most  powerful  city  in  the  Western  Continent;  and  whether  we  con- 
sider tho   audacity  of  the  attempt,  its  wonderful  success,  or  tlie 

•  The  native  appellition  of  the  uiiciuiit  citv  of  Mexico, 


■■"s». 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   HI8T0KY   OF  MEXICO. 


123 


strange  and  exciting  novelty  of  tne  attendant  circumstances,  it  must 
be  rcgr.rded  as  tlie  most  remarkable  exploit,  which  military  genius 
and  desperate  courage,  in  the  breasts  of  a  few,  have  ever  accom- 
plished. 'Glory  to  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,'  exclaims  Diaz,  with  pious 
self-complacency,  'who  gave  us  courage  to  venture  upon  such  dan- 
gers, and  brought  us  safely  through  them.'  #  ♦  *  'Here 
ends,'  he  proceeds, '  the  true  and  full  account  of  our  adventurous  and 
magnanimous  entrance  into  Mexico,  on  the  eighth  day  of  November, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1519.     Glory  be  to  Jesus  Christ  for  all.' " 

A  visit  from  the  emperor  and  a  fresh  display  of  his  liberality  con- 
cluded this  eventful  day.  On  the  next,  Cortes,  with  several  of  his 
officers,  repaired  to  the  royal  palace,  where  all  were  amazed  at  the 
fountains,  the  tapestry  of  gay  plumage,  and  other  tokens  of  taste 
and  refinement  by  which  it  was  adorned.  The  Spaniard,  as  usual,  at 
once  set  about  the  work  of  conversion,  and,  seated  by  the  emperor's 
side,  entertained  him,  through  Marina's  interpretation,  with  a  long 
and  elaborate  discourse  on  the  mysteries  of  the  Faith,  assuring  him, 
at  the  expense  both  of  civility  and  policy,  that  "those  things  which 
he"  (Montezuma)  "held  to  be  gods,  were  not  such,  but  uovils,  of 
evil  countenances  and  worse  deeds,"  and  announcing  that  the  sov- 
ereign of  Spain  had  sent  him  (Cortes)  to  rescue  the  soul  of  the  em- 
peror and  those  of  his  subjects  from  the  eternal  flames  into  which 
their  idols  would  conduct  them.  To  this  tirade,  Montezuma,  ■yrith 
remarkable  firmness,  civility,  and  good  sense,  replied  that  his  gods 
were  good,  and  so,  he  presumed,  were  those  of  the  Christians.  In 
the  coming  of  these  whfte  and  bearded  visitors  from  the  East,  he 
acknowledged,  he  said,  the  fulfilment  of  the  ancient  oracle,  and 
assured  the  general  that  he  and  his  master  should  share  in  all  his 
wealth,  authority,  and  dignity.  A  few  tears,  touching  to  record,  fell 
from  his  eyes  as  he  pronounced  these  words,  the  surrender  of  his 
ancient  honours  to  tlie  dictate  of  a  traditionary  superstition;  but  he 
recovered  his  cheerfulness,  conversed  with  most  charming  courtesy 
and  affability,  and  finally  dismissed  his  visitors  loaded  with  fresh 
presents  of  gold,  deeply  impressed  with  his  royal  demeanour,  and 
charmed  with  the  kindly  fascination  of  hia  manners. 


4 


,„,  THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  HISTORY. 

124 


CHAPTER   ?L 

•DESCRIPTION  OP  THE  ANCIENT  CAPITAL  OF  TKNOCHTITLAN  OB 

MEXICO. THE  PALACES  OF  MONTEZUMA, HIS  COLLECTIONS 

OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. — SUPERSTITION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS. 
—  HIDEOUS    SCENES    OP    SACRIFICE. — REFLECTIONS 

Before  entering  on  a  relation  of  the  memorable  events  which 
followed  the  entrance  of  the  Spaniards  into  Tenochtitlan,  and  before 
recording  the  utter  destruction  to  which  those  events  were  the  pre- 
lude, it  is  proper  to  give  some  description  of  that  ill-fated  city,  as  it 
appeared  to  Europeans  in  the  brief  interval  preceding  its  ruin  and 
annihilation.  "The  present  city  of  Mexico  occupies  the  site  of  this 
ancient  capital  of  the  Aztec,  and  the  long  causeways  which  led 
through  the  water  still  form  its  principal  approaches.  But  the 
waters  of  Lake  Tezcuco,  by  drainage,  -have  shrunk  away,  and  the 
Indian  Venice  which  they  environed  is  now  surrounded  by  dusty 
fieldf?,  inilts  from  the  shore.  At  the  time  of  the  Conquest,  it  was 
probably  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  picturesque  of  cities.  The 
houjes  were  of  reddish  stone  or  brick,  and  numerous  caTial.s,  with 
bridges,  intersected  it  throughout.  The  number  of  houses  is  reported 
to  have  been  sixty  thousand,  and  the  population,  it  is  probable,  was 
nearly  half  a  million.  Forty  thousand  persons  are  said  to  have 
assembled  in  the  market  on  public  days.  The  extent  of  its  ve-stiges, 
at  the  present  day,  indicates  a  city  of  great  population. 

"Sanitary  rules  were  carefully  observed.  The  aqueduct  of  Cha- 
pultepec  brought  a  copious  supply  of  fresh  water  into  the  city,  and 
a  thousand  persons  were  daily  employed  in  cleaning  the  street's. 
Among  the  peculiar  ornaments  of  this  marine  capital,  were  the 
numerous  floating  islands,  of  artificial  construction,  which  supported, 
not  only  a  great  variety  of  flowers  and  vegetables,  but  trees  of  con- 
Biderable  size,  and  the  cottages  of  their  proprietors. 

"The  palaces  of  the  emperor  were  of  vast  extent,  and  contained 
almost  innumerable  apartments.  Many  of  these  were  devoted  to  th^" 
accommodation  of  a  menagerie,  the  most  complete  and  extensive,  it 
i.s  probable,  in  the  pos.session  of  any  sovereign  of  the  day.  ^Vild 
animals,  collected  throughout  the  most  distant  regions  of  Anahuao, 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTOKY  OF  MEXICO. 


125 


were  here  lodged  in  numerous  and  convenient  receptacles;  and  the 
rarest  and  most  beautiful  birds,  in  vast  numbers,  were  housed  in 
magnificent  aviaries,  with  every  convenience  to  render  their  confine- 
nient  endurable.  But  the  fierce  aspect  of  the  caged  animals  and 
reptiles  struck  the  half-civilized  conquerors  rather  with  horror  than 
admiration.  'In  this  accursed  house,'  says  one  of  them,  'were  many 
vipers  and  other  poisonous  serpents,  which  have  in  their  tail  some- 
what that  sounds  like  castanets,  and  they  are  the  worst  of  all  vipers. 
*  *  These  beasts  and  horrid  reptiles  were  retained  to  keep 
company  with  their  infernal  gods,  and  when  the  lions  and  tygers 
roared,  and  the  foxes  and  jackals  howled,  and  the  snakes  hissed, 
'twas  a  grim  thing  to  hear,  and  seemed  like  hell  itself.'  In  this  par- 
ticular, at  least,  the  science  and  liberality  of  the  Indian  naturalist 
stand  in  strong  contrast  with  European  prejudice  and  superstition. 
Kven  the  learned  De  Solis,  writing  a  century  and  a  half  later,  could 
hardly  believe  it  por<ible  that  any  prince  should  have  cherished 
'  this  poisonous  Article  of  Magnificence,'  but  conceives  the  report  to 
have  been  a  vulgar  error,  founded  on  the  fierce  and  tyrannic  dispo- 
sition of  the  Aztec  sovereign. 

"  A  more  barbarous,  but  perhaps  not  less  royal  taste,  was  exhibited 
in  a  very  extensive  collection  of  monstrosities.  'Muteczuma,'  says 
a  writer  of  the  day,  *hath  three  great  houses  in  a  solitary  place  out 
of  the  way  to  refreshe  and  recreate  himself  in  the  heate  of  summer; 
in  one  of  these  he  hath  great  plentie  of  monstrous  men,  as  dwarfes, 
crooke  backes  and  men  with  one  legge  or  two  heades,  &c.,  &c.'  The 
vast  extent  and  admirable  arrangement  of  the  Botanic  Gardens  of 
the  emperor,  as  well  as  of  other  great  lords,  indicate  refinement 
of  a  certain  character,  to  which  no  European  nation,  at  that  age, 
had  attained. 

"The  state  maintained  by  the  emperor,  the  populous  condition  of 
his  harem,  and  the  number  of  his  attendants,  who  amounted  to  sev- 
eral thousands,  all  bore  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  luxurious  court 
of  an  Oriental  sovereign.  'No  one  of  the  Soldans,'  says  Corte^  in 
his  dispatches,  'nor  any  other  infidel  Signior,  of  whom  I  ever  heard, 
has,  to  my  belief,  a  court  so  stately  and  ceremonious.'  In  the 
minute  descriptions  of  the  day,  handed  down  by  curious  observers, 
we  find  the  great  Montezuma,  after  his  dinner,  smoking  tobacco  from 
ail  oriianientcd  pipe — apparently  a  novelty  to  his  guests,  though 
Columbus,  many  years  before,  had  found  the  natives  of  Cuba  in  the 
habit  of  using  the  same  herb  in  the  form  of  cigars. 


126 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


"Nothing  surprised  the  Spaniards  more  than  the  gloomy  'House 
of  Sorrow,'  to  which  the  emperor  was  accustomed  to  retire,  on  the 
death  of  any  of  his  relations,  or  in  event  of  any  public  calamity  or 
failure.  It  was  colored  entirely  black,  and  hardly  a  ray  of  light 
could  penetrate  through  the  little  windows  to  the  funereal  apartments 
within.  'In  this  dismal  Habitation  he  used  to  continue  until  the 
time  of  Mourning  was  over,  and  often,' continues  the  fanatical  Solis, 
'Yiere  the  Devil  appeared  to  him;  whether  it  be  that  the  Prince  of 
Darkness  took  delight  in  this  abode  of  Horror,  or  for  the  Sympatiiy 
there  is  between  that  malignant  Spirit  and  a  melancholy  Humour,'  "* 

The  emperor,  to  gratify  the  curiosity  of  his  guests,  four  days  after 
their  arrival,  conducted  them  to  the  most  remarkable  objects  in  the 
city.  Among  these  were  the  great  tiangnez  or  market-place,  inter- 
esting from  the  multitude  of  its  traders  and  the  variety  and  richness 
of  their  wares,  and  the  principal  teocalli,  or  mound-temple,  which 
they  ascended  by  a  winding  path,  a  mile  in  length,  and  which,  from 
its  summit,  presented  a  spectacle  so  magnificent,  that  those  who  had 
been  at  Rome  and  Constantinople  exclaimed  that  they  had  never 
seen  the  like.  The  emperor,  taking  Cortes  by  the  hand,  pointed 
out  the  chief  objects  of  interest;  but  that  zealous  champion  of  the 
Faith,  eager  for  an  opportunity  to  vindicate  his  creed,  requested  that 
he  might  be  introduced  to  the  presence  of  the  Aztec  deities. 

The  hideous  scenes  of  sacrifice  to  which  the  Spaniards  were  ac- 
cordingly conducted,  described  with  revolting  particularity  by  the 
observers,  may  be  briefly  represented.  First,  on  the  summit  of  the 
teocalli,  they  were  shown  the  terrible  Stone  of  Sacrifice,  on  which 
thousands  of  living  bodies  had  been  stretched,  with  the  breast  up- 
heaved in  the  air,  while  the  priest,  with  a  sharp  flint  knife,  laid  open 
the  sjmcvi  between  two  ribs,  and  plucking  forth  by  mi;in  force  the 
heart  of  the  sufferer,  held  it  up  smoking  in  the  sunshine  as  an  offer- 
ing to  the  vleity.  A  hideous  figure,  resembling  a  dragon,  presided 
over  this  dismal  altar,  and  much  blood,  freshly  spilt,  attested  the 
rcce.ncy  of  its  use. 

In  a  shrine  which  crowned  the  summit  of  the  teocalli,  were  huge 
misshapen  figures,  hideous  in  their  distortion,  but  brilliant  with 
jewels  and  gold.  Of  these  Huitzilopochtli,  the  Aztec  god  of  war, 
who  wore  a  necklace  composed  of  human  hearts  and  heads,  wrought 
in  the  precious  metals,  and  Tezeatepuca,  the  god  of  the  infernal 
.vorld,  "covered  with  little  serpent-tailecl  devils,"  were  the  most  con- 


•  n:. 


L'rcrS)  v.k-C|  Oi  /iiiicric& 


THE   CONQUEST  AND   HI8T0EY  OF  JBEXIOO 


127 


spicuous.  The  bodies  of  these  images,  so  gaily  tricked  out  with 
jewels  and  gold,  were  composed  of  the  seeds  of  certain  plants  kneaded 
up  with  the  blood  of  human  beings,  expressly  slain  for  the  manu- 
facture. A  number  of  hearts,  recently  extracted,  lay  before  them, 
and  the  walls  of  their  shrine,  from  long  repetition  of  these  hideous 
offerings,  were  covered  with  dried  blood  to  the  thickness  of  .two  fin- 
gers. Struck  with  horror  at  the  revolting  spectacle,  Cortes  raised 
his  voice  in  vehement  remonstrance  against  this  sanguinary  idolatry, 
but  only  succeeded  in  shocking  the  religious  prejudices  of  his  host, 
who,  after  the  departure  cf  his  guests,  remained,  to  deprecate,  with 
renewed  sacrifice,  the  supposed  indignation  of  his  gods. 

In  the  great  square  below,  the  Sji' niards  beheld  fresh  evidences 
of  this  wholesale  system  of  human  butchery.  There  was  a  shrine 
built  in  the  shape  of  a  huge  monster,  with  mouth  wide  open,  as  it 
were  gaping  for  victims,  and  clotted,  as  usual,  with  the  gore  of 
innumerable  sacrifices.  "  ^jTe  never  gave  this  accursed  building," 
says  Diaz,  "any  name  except  that  of  hell."  On  another  teocalli 
which  they  visited,  was  a  vast  frame-work,  covered  with  the  skulls 
of  more  than  a  hundred  thousand  victims.  Incredible  as  the  state- 
ment may  seem,  "in  the  same  square  wuich  contained  all  these 
enormities,  were  extensive  and  admirable  institutions  for  the  educa- 
tion of  the  youth  of  both  sexesl  Not  to  form  too  exaggerated  an 
estimate  of  the  horrors  of  Mexican  theology,  we  must  remember  that, 
at  this  very  time,  and  long  afterwards,  human  sacrifices,  in  their  most 
revolting  form,  were  commonly  celebrated  by  the  most  refined  nations 
of  Europe.  On  the  score  of  humanity,  the  sharp  flint  and  uprooted 
heart  of  the  Aztec  are  surely  preferable  to  the  san-henito  and  the 
stake  of  the  Spaniard ;  while,  as  to  the  principle  involved,  one  can 
see  little  to  choose  betwef^n  a  blood  offering  to  the  shrine  of  the 
fierce  Huitzilopochtli,  or  to  that  of  some  fantastic  theory,  such  as 
the  Real  Presence." 


Ah 


E 


J  28 


lEi  PSOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOBY. 


CHAPTEHvII. 

UNPRINCIPLED  8CHEMS  OF  CORTES. — HIS  TREACHEROUS 

SEIZURE  OF  MONTEZUMA. — BURNINO  OF  THE  AZTEC 

CHIEFS. — OUTRAGE  ON  THE  EMPEROR'S  PERSON. — 

FRUSTRATED  CONSPIRACY  OF  THE  PRINCES. THE 

CACIQUES  SWEAR  ALLEGIANCE  TO  THE  SPANISH 

CROWN. — AFFECTING  SCENE. — GREAT  TRIBUTE 

OF  TREASURE.  —  RAPACITY  OF  CORTES. 

A  chapel  was  erected  in  the  palace  of  Axayacatl,  and  mass  was 
daily  performed,  with  unusual  decorum  and  solemnity  of  deport- 
ment, for  the  edification  of  the  Aztecs.  These,  though  little  moved 
by  the  mystferious  spectacle,  continued  to  pay  the  most  assiduous 
and  hospitable  attention  to  the  thousands  of  strangers,  both  Spaniards 
and  ho.stile  Tlascalans,  who,  uninvited,  had  thrust  themselves  within 
the  walls  of  the  capital.  But  the  ambitious  mind  of  the  Spanish 
leader,  aiming  at  the  immediate  subjugation  of  the  country,  as  the 
only  means  of  attaining  the  countenance  of  his  sovereign  and  eluding 
the  vengeance  of  the  incensed  Velasquez,  was  ill  at  ease,  and  darkly 
revolved  a  plot,  "the  most  daring,  politic,  and  utterly  unprincipled, 
which  the  mind  of  man  could  devise."  This  was  to  seize  the  person 
of  his  ho.st,  the  generous  and  hospitable  Montezuma,  and  thus  gain 
instant  possession  of  his  realm. 

Solemn  prayer  and  religious  service,  as  usual  in  any  case  of  extreme 
audacity  or  villany,  was  maintained  by  the  Spaniards  all  the  night 
previous  to  the  attempt;  and  Cortes,  during  the  same  time,  was 
heard  pacing  his  room  unquietly  like  one  unable  to  lest  from  anxiety. 
Tn  the  morning,  after  mass  and  benediction,  the  general,  with  Alva- 
rado,  Sandoval,  Lujo,  Leon,  and  Avila,  five  of  his  bravest  captains, 
repaired  to  tlie  palace.  The  emperor  was  in  a  joyous  mood,  and, 
with  his  usual  liberality,  bestowed  rich  presents  on  his  guests.  A 
number  c»f  .soldiers,  by  instruction,  had  gradually  as.sembled  in  the 
courtyard,  and  Cortes  (to  u.se  his  own  words),  "after  conversing  with 
liim  in  a  sjtortive  manner  on  agreeable  topics,  and  receiving  ai  his 
hand  some  jewels  of  gold,  ami  one  of  his  oicn  dau-jhters"  abruptly 
changed  his  tone,  and  accused  his  host  of  the  murder  of  two  Span- 


* 


^^—p' 


ti  ■A7'--if,"'iij^«j(rarj^,'  ;,■!■ '■■'■' '  1  .;  ''\:r 


-.•i^>^ 


r 


■  «   ; 


I   i 


III! 


mi  r 


,"■■     ■     '  -  . 


Till' 

iarda,  lately  1 
bourhood  of 
surprise,  dec] 
his  signet,  di 
be  transmittc 

Ilia  design 
he  could,  bn 
mark  of  conf 
Perceiving  h 
ently,  with  a 
heard  that  a 
become  a  pri 
to  such  a  dcj 
"my  subjecti 
importunity, 
Yelaaquez  d 
dense  ranks 
nnd  the  peoj 
Assurance  (w 
them)  that  tli 
them  of  his 
omitted  no  a 
the  royal  est 
yacutl,  when 
usual.  The 
a[)pear  to  ha 
captors;  but 
knowing  thi 
Aztec  populi 

The  accusi 
fifteen  other 
was  committ 
a  cruelty,  th 
caused  them 
funeral  pyrei 
lins,  taken  1 
attack  from 
victims  undt 
cution,  Cor 
chamber  of 

xr_. 


jM  o  V  /•  ^:  /■ 


M   I. 


THE   CONCiUKST    AND   HISTOKY    OF    MEXICO. 


120 


iarda,  lately  killed  by  one  Quaupopoca,  an  Aztec  chief,  in  the  ncigli- 
boarhood  of  Vera  Cruz.  Afontezuma,  with  every  appearance  of 
surprise,  declared  that  he  would  examine  the  case,  and  pulling  off 
his  signet,  dispatched  orders  that  all  concerned  in  the  affair  should 
be  transmitted  for  trial  to  the  capital. 

His  design  of  a  quarrel  thus  foiled,  Cortes  at  last,  with  what  civility 
he  could,  broached  his  insidious  project,  inviting  the  emperor,  as  a 
mark  of  confidence,  to  take  up  his  abode  in  the  Spanish  quarters. 
Perceiving  his  danger,  the  unhappy  sovereign  turned  pale,  but  pres- 
ently, with  a  haughty  flush  on  his  face,  replied,  "When  was  it  ever 
heard  that  a  great  prince,  like  myself,  voluntarily  left  his  palace  to 
become  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  strangers?  If  I  should  consent 
to  such  a  degradation,"  he  continued,  \^  answer  to  their  arguments, 
"my  subjects  never  would,"  For  two  hours  he  resisted  their  vile 
importunity,  but  at  length,  threatened  with  assassination  by  the  fierce 
Yelasqucz  de  Leon,  was  compelled  to  yield.  Escorted  amid  the 
dense  ranks  of  the  Spaniards,  he  quitted  his  palace,  never  to  return; 
nnd  the  people,  who  would  have  rescued  him,  were  quieted  by  the 
jissurance  (which,  to  preserve  some  shadow  of  his  dignity,  he  gave 
them)  that  the  Spaniards  were  his  friends,  and  that  he  was  going  with 
them  of  his  own  accoid.  In  justice  to  Cortes,  his  end  attained,  he 
omitted  no  attention  or  show  of  deference  to  his  captive.  Much  of 
the  royal  establishment  was  removed  to  the  fortified  palace  of  Axa- 
yacatl,  where  he  held  his  court,  and  governed  his  empire  nearly  as 
usual.  The  nobleness,  generosity,  and  affability  of  his  demeanour, 
a[)pear  to  have  inspired  the  highest  admiration  and  affection  in  his 
captors;  but  they  guarded  him  with  the  I'tmo.-  strictness,  well 
knowing  that  if  their  imperial  hostage  were  once  free,  the  whole 
Aztec  population  would  rise  in  arms  against  them. 

The  accused  cacique,  Quaupopoca,  ere  long  arrived  at  court,  with 
fifteen  other  chiefs,  all  participant  in  the  act  of  hostility.  Their  fate 
was  committed  to  Cortes,  or  rather  usurped  by  him,  and  practising 
a  cruelty,  the  continually  rep(>ated  disgrace  of  the  Spanish  name,  he 
caused  them  all  to  be  burned  alive  in  front  of  the  palace.  Their 
funeral  pyres  were  composed  of  a  vast  quantity  of  arrows  and  jave- 
lins, taken  from  th;  royal  arsenal,  to  diminish  the  danger  of  an 
attack  from  the  citi'.en8.  While  this  atrocious  sentence,  which  the 
victims  underwent  with  true  Indian  fortitude,  was  carried  into  exe- 
cution, Cortes,  with  an  attendant,  bearing  fetters,  entered  the 
chamber  of  the  unfortunate  Montezuma.     With  harsh  repro.-xches, 


VUU.    lil.- 


liS  '*l 


1#. 


UJI   ,.,J  Ik.  >Jl,|ll 


1^ 


«p^ 


180 


TIIK    I'KorLE'S   IIOUK   OF   HISTDUV. 


l»o  ordored  tliom  to  ho  fiiatencd  to  the  foot  of  his  cnptive,  nnd  tlien 
nhruptly  qiiittod  liiin.  Thiit  niihiij>py  priiicr,  for  tho  first  tiino  roully 
awakftied  to  the  terrific  nature  of  his  fall,  nltcroil  low  and  half-Hup- 
prcsflod  moans,  whilo  his  attoiKhints,  weeping,  hcM  hia  feet  in  tlieir 
arms,  and  tried,  by  inserting  their  mantles,  to  mitigate  the  harsh 
confaet  of  the  naked  iron.  The  ehiefs  reduced  to  ashes,  Cortes  riSen- 
tered  tho  apartment,  and  took  ofl"  the  chains  with  his  own  hands. 
The  spirit  of  his  captive  was  completely  broken,  and  he  thencefor- 
ward submitted  like  a  child  to  nearly  every  requirement  of  his 
conqueror. 

"There  is,  perhaps,  hardly  a  passage  in  history  more  curious  than 
this  transaeti(m  in  the  capital  of  the  Aztecs — and  could  the  damning 
accompatiiments  of  treachery,  ingratitude,  and  cruelty  be  left  out,  it 
might  stand  as  the  mo.st  splendid  example  of  policy,  boldncs.'',  and 
8uccp.«!s  that  ever  was  recorded.  Its  effect,  for  a  time,  was  certainly  to 
put  the  Sj)aniard3  in  complete  possession  of  the  governm(Mit  of  all 
Mexico.  Little  compunction  seems  to  have  been  felt  by  the  actors, 
exultant  in  success.  Diaz,  fifty  yf'irs  aftf^rwards,  writes:  'Now  that 
I  am  old,  I  frc(piently  revolve  and  reflect  on  the  event.s  of  that  day, 
which  appear  to  me  as  fresh  as  if  they  had  just  passed,  such  is  tho 
impression  they  have  made  upon  my  mind.  I  say,  it  wa.s  not  wc 
who  did  these  things,  but  that  all  was  guided  by  the  hand  of  God. 
*         *         *         There  is  much  food  for  meditation  in  thi.*^,'"  &c. 

The  caciques  and  princes  of  ^fexico,  unprepared  to  prevent  tho 
unexpected  seizure  of  their  lord,  and  still  uncertain  of  his  exact 
relations  with  the  Spaniards,  thoiigh  deeply  concerned  at  his  deten- 
tion, continued,  for  the  most  part,  to  pay  him  the  most  loyal  obe- 
dience. Chief  among  tho  few  who  felt  the  true  degradation  of  the 
empire,  and  resolved  on  attempting  its  deliverance,  was  his  young 
nephew  Cacama,  the  prince  of  Tezcuco.  Next  to  Montezuma,  he 
was  the  most  powerful  lord  in  Mexico,  his  capit.il  (Tezou'o)  contain- 
ing an  hundred  and  fifty  thou.saii  i  inhabitants,  and  t! ough  by  the 
ambition  of  his  brother  Txtlilxochitl,  despoiled  of  a  portion  of  his 
territory,  was  an  enemy  by  no  means  to  be  despised.  With  the 
brother  of  the  em[)eror  and  a  few  other  great  lords,  he  now  con- 
spired to  restore  the  imprisoned  nii'tiarch  h  liberty,  and  drive  the 
wizard  Spaniards  and  the  liated  Tlascalans  from  the  land.  To  tho 
demands  of  Cortes  that  he  slTould  give  in  liis  allegiance  to  the  king, 
and  to  his  treacherous  invitations  to  visit  the  capital,  this  high-!<pir- 
iied  prince  replied  that  "he  knew  nothing  of  the  Spanish  sovereign 


THE   CONQUEST   AXP  niSTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


131 


nor  his  people,  nor  did  ho  winh  to  know  any  thing  of  them — tliat  ho 
would  como  t<»  Tenouhtitliin  indeed,  hut  with  his  sword  in  his  hand, 
to  rcseuc  the  emperor  and  the  Aztec  gods  from  Hlavcry."  Tint  whilo 
preparing  to  fulfil  this  patriotic  threat,  ho  was  treacherously  entrapped, 
and,  witlf  his  [)riticipal  confederates,  carried  in  chains  to  Mexico. 

Cortes,  now  feeling  secure  in  his  position,  proceeded  rapidly  with 
the  work  of  survey  and  colonization — his  task  being  aided  hy  a  map, 
admirably  delineated,  of  an  hundred  and  forty  leagues  of  the  coast, 
presented  to  him  by  Montezunia.  He  next  exacted  from  that  sov- 
ereign a  formal  recognition  of  the  authority  of  the  Spanish  crown. 
The  caciques,  summoned  from  all  parts  of  the  empire,  with  surprise 
and  regret,  heard  their  emperor  require  that  their  allegiance  should 
be  transferred  to  these  strangers — the  same,  he  informed  them,  whoso 
coming  had  so  long  been  foretold.  "I  now  beseech  you,"  he  said, 
"to  give'  them  some  token  of  submission;  they  require  it  of  me; 
let  no  one  refuse.  For  eighteen  years  that  I  have  reigned,  I  have 
been  a  kind  monarch  to  you,  you  have  been  faithful  subjects  to  me; 
since  my  gods  will  have  it  so,  indulge  me  with  this  one  instance  of 
your  obedience."  Tears  fell  fnnn  his  eyes,  and  the  caciques,  also 
weei)ing  bitterly,  assured  him  that  his  will  had  always  been  their 
lav/,  and  should  be  at  once  comjdied  with.  All  took  the  required 
oath,  in  presenceof  many  officers  and  soldiers,  "not  one  of  whom," 
says  a  witness,  "could  refrain  from  weeping,  on  beholding  the  agi- 
tation and  distress  of  the  great  and  generous  Montezuma."  With 
excessive  rapacity  and  impudence,  ^<M'les  now  suggested  that  a  splen- 
did present  be  prepared  for  his  m.ister,  the  king  of  Spain,  and  accord- 
ingly couriers  were  dispatche!  for  the  collection  of  treasure  to  all 
parts  of  the  kingdom. 

Tn  addition  to  the  tribii'o  thus  obtained,  the  emperor  bestowed 
upon  his  gaoler  a  great  hoard  of  jewels  and  gold,  wrought  with 
masterly  skill,  which  had  been  ainas.sed  by  Axayacatl,  and  the  ejfist- 
cnce  of  which,  in  a  private  room  at  their  quarters,  the  Spaniards  had 
di.scovered.  "Take  this  gold,"  he  said,  "which  is  all  that  could  be 
collected  on  so  short  a  notice,  anil  also  the  treasure  which  I  (Icrive 
from  my  ancestors,  and  which  you  have  seen.  And  this  which  I 
now  give,"  he  added,  with  touching  truth,  laying  a  few  splendid 
remains  of  his  regalia  with  the  rest,  "is  the  last  of  the  treasure 
which  has  remained  with  me."  The  whole  amounted  to  the  value 
of  six  or  seven  millions  of  dollars  at  the  present  day,  but  the  com- 
mon soldiers  hardly 'received  a  thousand  dollars  a-piece,  the  lion'd 


■"4.^v*i: 


132 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF    IIISTOKY. 


share  being  reserved  for  the  crown,  for  Velasquez,  and  for  Cortos 
and  his  favourites.  All  the  eloquence  and  all  the  promises  of  tlio 
general  could  hardly  reconcile  these  rough  spirits  to  their  palpable 
defraudment,  and  induce  their  acceptance  of  the  paltry  share  allotted 
to  them;  but  with  the  true  national  passion  for  gambling,  they  made 
cards  from  their  drum-heads,  and  passed  day  and  night  in  staking 
all  that  they  possessed. 


RELIGIOUS  ZE.VL  OF  CORTES.  —  DISCONTENT  OP  THE  MEXICANS. 
—  DANGEROUS   POSITION    OP  THE  SPANIARDS.  —  TRANSAC- 
TIONS AT  THE  COURT  OP  SPAIN._ VEI-ASQUEZ  DISPATCHES 

AN  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  CORTES. CORTES  MARCHES 

AGAINST    NARVAEZ. DEPEATS    AND    TAKES    HIM 

PRISONER.  —  HIS    POLITIC    CONDUCT   APTKR   VIC- 
TORY.—  HIS    FORCES    GREATLY    AUGMENTED' 

Amid  these  miserable  reverses  and  spoliations,  the  emperor,  de- 
throned in  all  but  name,  preserved,  for  the  most  part,  a  truly  royal 
yet  affable  demeanour.  "  It  is  impossible,"  says  Diaz,  "  to  describe  how 
noble  he  was  in  every  thing  he  did,  nor  the  respect  in  which  he  was 
held  by  every  one  around  him."  On  the  point  of  religion,  however,  he 
stood  lirm,  and  all  the  arguments  und  persuasions  of  the  friars,  as 
well  as  of  Cortes  himself,  who  daily  introduced  the  subject,  were  of 
no  effect  either  on  his  heart  or  understanding.  "The  Devil,"  argues 
De  Soli.s,  "lia<l  got  such  an  Ascendant  over  his  Mind  that  no  Argu- 
ment's were  of  force  enongli  to  touch  his  obdurate  Heart.  It  was 
not  known  whether  he  had  a  Communication  from  the  Devil,  or  if 
lie  continued  to  appear  to  him,  as  u.sual,  after  the  Sjxiiimrds  arrived 
at  Mcxko;  on  the  contrary,  it  wa.s  believed  as  certain,  that  from  the 
first  aj)pearancc  of  the  Crons  of  Christ  in  that  City,  all  those  infernal 
Invocations  lost  their  Force,  and  the  Oracles  b<>came  silent."  It  may 
be  imagiiu'  then,  how  evfry  feeling  of  religion,  of  as.sociation,  and 
of  8uperstiin>n,  wiia  sliockcd  when  Cortes  proposed  ihat  the  great 
teocalli,  the  nuxst  vcnei;ited  structure  in  all  Anahuac,  should  bo 
yielded  up  for  the  use  of  the  Chii.stian  worship.     "Why,  oh  Malin- 


THE   CONQUEST  AND   HI8T0KY   -^  F  MEXICO. 


133 


clie,"*  he  said,  "  will  you  urge  matters  to  an  extremity  that  must 
surely  bring  down  the  vengeance  of  our  gods,  and  stir  up  an  insur- 
rection among  the  people?"  But,  after  a  conference  with  his  priests, 
"with  much  agitation  and  the  appearance  of  deep  sorrow,  he  heavily 
consented  "  that  the  Christians  should  occupy  one  of  the  sanctuaries 
on  its  summit.  Accordingly,  an  Image  of  the  Virgin  was  set  up,  and 
the  Mass  and  other  Catholic  rites  were  now  solemnly  performed, 
day  by  day,  hard  by  the  blood-stained  dwellings  of  Huitzilopochtli 
and  Tezeatepuca. 

Thus  far  the  people,  with  extraordinary  patience,  and  unable  to 
divorce  in  their  minds  the  ancient  authority  of  the  emperor  from 
its  usurpation  by  the  Spaniards,  had  meekly  submitted  to  every  ex- 
action and  encroachment.  But  mankind  will  far  more  readily  put 
up  with  any  other  species  of  grievance  and  oppression  than  with  the 
least  affront  to  old  hereditary  faith  or  superstition.  Ominous  indi- 
cations of  an  approaching  storm  were  soon  visible.  The  caciques 
and  nobles  held  long  and  gloomy  conferences  with  their  sovereign, 
and  the  latter  finally  announced  to  Cortes  (by  direct  information 
from  Satan,  says  a  Spanish  historian)  that  the  Aztec  deities,  their 
shrines  profaned,  were  preparing  the  destruction  of  the  invaders. 
For  their  own  sake,  he  counselled  the  Spaniards  to  leave  the  city  at 
once,  before  a  general  rising  of  the  people  should  cut  off  all  chance 
of  escape.  To  allay  the  public  excitement,  the  general  now  promised 
to  leave  the  country  as  soon  as  vessels  could  be  procured;  and,  to 
give  confidence  to  his  words,  ordered  the  construction  of  several  on 
the  coa-st.  Ilis  real  object,  it  is  probable,  was  to  gain  time  for  the 
arrival  of  expected  reinforcements. 

Meanwhile,  the  Spaiiisli  camp  was  filled  with  gloom  and  appre- 
hension, and  tlie  strictesl  vigilance  was  used  to  prevent  a  surprise. 
The  horses  stood  night  and  day  ready  caparisoned  for  service,  and 
the  soldiers  slept  on  their  arms,  as  if  in  the  very  presence  of  battle. 
While  thus  hanissed  by  constant  fear  and  suspicion,  their  condi- 
tion was  rendered  still  more  precarious  by  the  arrival  of  startling 
tidings  from  the  coast. 

The  ve.ssel  dispatched  to  Spain  by  Cortes  with  tidings  of  his  first 
achievements,  .ilicr  touching  at  Cuba,  contrary  to  orders,  had  held 
her  way  to  Kuioi'i',  and  in  October,  1519,  had  arrived  at  the  port  of 
San  Lucar.     The  news  which  she  brought,  and  the  magnificent  dis- 

♦  This  was  the  native  (ippollatioii  of  Slariiiu,  tlii'  mistress  of  Cortes,  a  imme  Boon 
gtMicriilly  iipplied  to  liimseif  by  the  whole  populution  of  Mexico. 


ii 

miff- 


101 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


phiy  of  treasure,  (the  early  gifts  of  Montezuma,)  now,  for  the  first 
time,  realizing  the  golden  visions  of  Western  ambition,  threw  all 
Spain  into  a  fever  of  excitement;  but  owing  to  the  adverse  influ- 
ence of  Bishop  Fonseoa  and  others,  the  agents  of  Cortes  were  unable 
to  effect  any  thing  in  his  favour  with  the  emperor,  Charles  V.;  and 
in  May,  1520,  allured  by  schemes  of  European  aggrandizement,  that 
sovereign  left  his  kingdom  without  attempting  to  settle  the  command 
of  Mexico,  or  to  further  the  daring  and  ill-supplied  enterprise  for  its 
conquest.  As  for  Velasquez,  from  the  moment  he  learned  the  value 
of  the  invaded  province,  and  the  defection  of  his  general,  he  set  to 
work  with  indescribable  fury  and  energy  to  wrest  back  the  authority 
which  he  hud  so  incautiously  bestowed,  and  to  achieve  an  adequate 
revenge  upon  his  treacherous  ally  and  revolted  vassal.  By  extra- 
ordinary exertions,  he  fitted  out  a  fleet  of  eighteen  sail,  well  provided 
with  artillery  and  other  munitions  of  war.  and  manned  by  nine 
hundred  men,  eager  to  share  in  the  anticipated  spoil  of  the  wealthiest 
kingdom  in  the  Indies.  Pamphilo  de  Narvaez,  the  governor's  fa- 
vourite officer — a  bold,  rash,  and  arrogant  man — was  placed  in  com- 
mand, and  the  fleet,  sailing  in  March,  1520,  arrived  at  San  Juan  de 
Ulua  in  the  latter  part  of  April. 

The  rage  of  Narvaez,  on  learning  of  the  independence  and  the 
extraordinary  success  of  Cortes,  was  extreme.     He  proclaimed  him 
a  traitor,  and  sent  a  priest  and  a  notary  to  demand  the  surrender  of 
the  fortress  of  Vera  Cruz.     But  Sandoval,  the  youthful  commander 
of  that  post,  one  of  the  bravest  and  fiercest  leaders  of  the  conquest, 
was  a  devoted  adherent  of  Cortes.     He  set  up  a  ga]low.s,  avowing 
that  he  would  suspend  from  it  any  who  might  show  a  sign  of  disaf- 
fection; and,  on  the  arrival  of  his  legal  and  clerical  visitors,  bound 
them  hand  and  foot,  and  sent  them  post  haste  ("like  so  many  damned 
souls,"  says  the  narrative)  on  the  backs  of  Indian  porters,  to  Mexico. 
Relays,  as  usual,  were  waiting  to  receive  th^m  every  few  miles,  and 
thus  they  were  transferred  from  back  to  back,  and  hurried,  bewil- 
dered by  tlieir  strange  conveyance,  in  a  wonderfully-short  time,  to 
the   capital.      Accurate   pictures,   as   usual,  of  the   fleet   and   the 
strangers  had  been  dispatched  to  Montezuma  by  his  officials,  and 
though  most  of  the  soldiers  exulted  in  the  supposed  rcinforeement, 
Cortf'S  slirewdly  suspected  the  real   nature  of  the  expetlition,  and 
rescilved,  at  every  hazard,  to  hold  fast  to  the  brilliant  prize  which 
be  had  won. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  alarmed  and  bewildered  messengers,  he 


THE   CONQUEST   AND   HISTOKY   OF   MEXICO. 


135 


treated  them  in  the  most  gracious  manner,  "said  so  many  civil 
things  to  them,  and  anointed  tlieir  fingers  so  well  with  gold,  that  in 
a  few  days  he  sent  back,  as  tractable  as  lambs,  those  who  had  set 
out  against  him  like  roaring  lions."  By  their  hands  he  dispatched  a 
conciliatory  message  to  Narvaez,  tendering  submission,  if  the  latter 
were  provided  with  a  royal  commission,  well  knowing  that  he  had 
none.  He  also  sent  the  worthy  Father  Olmedo,  an  ecclesiastic  popu- 
lar from  his  wit  and  good-humour,  as  well  as  formidable  from  his 
powers  of  policy  and  intrigue,  with  a  liberal  supply  of  gold,  to  make 
a  party  in  his  favour  among  the  new  comers.  He  next  resolved  on 
a  step  of  extraordinary  boldness  and  hazard.  It  was  nothing  less 
than  to  fling  himself  boldly  into  the  enemy's  camp,  and  trust  to  his 
own  popularity,  and  the  tried  valour  of  his  soldiers,  to  gain  the 
entire  command  of  Mexico. 

Leaving  an  hundred  and  forty  men,  under  charge  of  Pedro  de 
Alvarado,  to  hold  tae  city  and  the  captive  emperor,  he  set  forth  in 
the  middje  of  May,  with  only  seventy  men,  on  his  way  to  the  coast. 
Keinforced  at  Cholula  by  Velasquez  de  Leon,  whom,  with  an  hun- 
dred and  twei^tv  "ad  lately  dispatched  to  found  a  certain  colony, 
he  marched  to  Tl  :  .1  a,  and  was  soon  joined  by  sixty  more,  being 
the  late  garrison  of  Vera  Cruz,  under  command  of  the  devoted  San- 
doval. As  he  approached  Cempoalla,  where  the  force  of  Narvaez 
was  quartered,  he  sent  forward  Velasquez  de  Leon,  a  relation  of  the 
governor,  but  a  staunch  adherent  to  his  own  faction,  on  a  fresh  errand 
of  insinuation  among  the  hostile  forces. 

On  a  dark  and  stormy  night,  he  arrived  before  the  city,  and  har- 
angued his  troops  in  a  strain  of  rude  and  forcible  eloquence.  He 
recounted  their  j)erils,  their  losses,  their  wonderful  achievements; 
"and  now,  gentlemen,"  he  continued,  "Narvaez  comes,  and  immedi- 
ately upon  landing  proclaims  war  against  us,  with  fire,  sword,  and 
rope,  as  if  we  were  infidel  Moors."  So  fired  were  the  soldiers  with 
this  rough  but  stirring  address,  that  all  cried  out  that  they  were 
resolved  to  conquer  or  die,  and  that  if  he  again  spoke  of  dividing 
the  ^uiitry  with  his  rival,  they  would  plunge  their  swords  into  his 
body.  Meanwhile  the  cacique  of  Cempoalla  vainly  remonstrated 
with  Narvaez  on  his  supineness.  "What  are  you  doing?"  he  cried, 
"  and  how  careless  are  yi)u  !  Do  you  think  Malinche  and  his  Teules* 
are  so?  I  tell  you  that  when  you  least  expect  it,  he  will  come  upon 
you  and  put  you  all  to  death."     But  that  commander,  confiding  in 

*  Spirits  or  superniitural  beings — diiciiions. 


B       '     I 


^<    ■■■! 


136 


THE  PEorLF/S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


the  number  of  tis  troops  and  the  strength  of  his  position,  treated 
the  alarm  lightly,  and  even  boasted,  it  is  said,  that  he  would  cut  off 
Cortes'  ears,  broil  ihem,  and  eat  them. 

In  the  dead  of  night,  his  adversary,  with  two  hundred  and  sixty 
men,  shrouded  by  the  storm,  moved  wi  <ily  into  the  town.  As  he 
approached  the  cam^  of  Narvaez,  the  ilavm  was  giver,  and  the 
invaders,  shouting  "Santo  Spiritol  Santo  Spirito!"  rushed  on  to  the 
attack.  Before  the  garrison  could  get  fairly  on  their  guard,  the 
enemy  were  in  their  midst,  and  though  Narvaez  and  many  of  his 
people  made  a  gallant  resistance,  yet  by  firing  the  sanctuary,  which 
they  were  defending,  they  were  compelled  to  yield.  Their  leader, 
receiving  a  disabling  blow,  cried.  "Iloly  Mary,  assist  me  I  they  have 
killed  me,  and  struck  out  one  of  my  eyes."  The  party  of  Cortes 
caught  up  the  word.  "Narvaez  is  killed  I  victory,  for  the  Holy 
Spirit!"  was  shouted  by  all,  and  the  remaining  portions  of  the  garri- 
son, which  still  held  out,  supposing  their  leader  killed,  surrendered. 
"With  a  loss  of  only  six  of  his  men,  and  twice  that  number  of  the 
enemy,  Cortes  had  succeeded  in  overcoming  a  force  three  times 
greater  than  liis  own,  strongly  intrenched  and  provided  with  artillery. 
Tnis  remarkable  result  was  owing  partly  to  the  favourable  circum- 
stances of  the  night,  partly  to  the  suddenness  and  fury  of  his  attack, 
and  still  more,  perhaps,  to  the  interest  which  his  gold  had  procured 
him  anong  the  new  levies. 

"'By  I,.'  time,'  says  a  witness,  *it  was  clear  day.  Cortei,  seated 
in  an  arm-chair,  a  mantle  of  orange  colour  thrown  over  his  shoulders, 
his  arms  by  his  side,  and  surrounded  by  his  officers  and  soldiers, 
received  the  salutations  of  the  cavaliers,  who,  as  they  dismounted, 
came  up  to  ki;  ^  his  hand.  It  was  wonderful  to  see  the  affability  and 
the  kindness  w  ..  which  he  spoke  to  and  embraced  them,  and  the 
compliments  wl.)  -h  he  made  to  them.'  Nearly  all,  both  officers  and 
soldiers,  took  tli>!  oath  of  allegiance  to  him  as  Captain-General,  and 
were  a.ssurod  that  tliey  should  share  in  the  fruits  of  the  Conquest. 
Thus,  by  an  extraordinary  concurrence  of  polioy,  audacity  and  good 
fortune,  he  suddenly  found  himself,  as  if  by  magic,  from  a  desjierate 
adventurer,  the  commander  of  a  large  and  well-ajtpointed  force  for  the 
retention  and  extension  of  his  conquestf<."  The  new  recruits  were 
still  further  projtitiated  by  the  rostoration  of  all  their  horses,  arms,  and 
other  articles  which  had  bi-en  seized  on  the  night  of  tlie  attack;  and 
Hitch  liberal  present.s  were  showered  upon  them  as  to  excite  the  envy 
and  discontent  of  the  successful  faction.     'I'hey  compared  the  conduct 


^■••h^L 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


137 


of  their  general  o  ha*  of  Alexander,  who,  it  was  said,  always  lav- 
ished more  favours  on  the  vanquished  than  on  those  who  had  won 
him  the  victory. 


CEAPTEH   IX. 

MASSACRE  OP  THE  CACIQUES  BY  ALVAEADO. — THE  OAEEISON 
BESIEGED.  —  CORTES  RETURNS  TO  MEXICO. — HIS  ANGER  AND 
INSOLENCE. — GENERAL  ATTACK  BY  THE   AZTECS.  —  DES- 
PERATE    CONFLICT     FOR     MANY     DAYS.  —  MONTEZUMA 

ADDRESSES  THE  PEOPLE.  —  DISASTROUS   RESULT. 

THE  GREAT  TEOC  vLLI  TAKEN  BY  STORM. 

The  exultation  which  Cortes  had  evidently  felt  at  his  wonderful 
success  was  almost  immediately  damped  by  disastrous  tidings  from 
the  capital.  Alvarado,  his  deputy,  (afterwards  the  Conqueror  of 
Guatemala,)  a  man  of  equal  ferocity  and  courage,  had  granted  per- 
mission to  a  great  number  of  the  Aztec  nobility  to  celebrate  in  the 
court  of  the  chief  teocalli,  fronting  the  Spanish  quarters,  a  graad 
dance  in  honour  of  their  god  Iluitzilopoclitli.  Six  hundred  in 
number,  unarmed,  and  attired  in  their  gayest  robes,  like  the  Mame- 
lukes of  Ali,  they  entered  the  fatal  square.  But  while  they  were 
fully  engaged  in  this  solemnity,  Alvaraf'j,  excited  by  the  vague 
report  of  conspiracy,  witli  a  cruelty  and  rashness  almost  incredible, 
had  fallen  on  these  defenceless  beings  with  his  ferocious  soldiery, 
and  had  butchered  them  to  a  man!  The  pavement  ran  with  blood, 
as  with  water  after  a  heavy  rain ;  and  the  bodies  of  the  victims,  rich 
in  ;roldcu  ornaments,  were  plundered,  with  shameless  rapacit}'',  by 
tlieir  murderers.  Maddened  at  this  outrage,  the  Aztecs,  hitherto  so 
jjcaceful  and  submi.^sive,  had  risen  en  viaf:sc  against  the  garrison. 
Seven  of  the  Spaniards  were  killed  and  a  great  number  wounded. 
Two  brigantines,  which  they  had  built,  were  destroyed;  and  though 
the  assailants,  at  the  intercession  of  Montezuma,  finally  desisted  from 
the  attack,  it  was  only  to  form  a  regular  blockade  of  the  palace,  to 
destroy  the  Spaniards  and  tlieir  six  thousand  allies  by  famine. 

Leaving  only  a  hundred  men  at  Vera  Cruz,  Cortes,  with  the 
rriii;iiii(l(T  (if  his  force,  amounting  to  a  thousand  foot  and  one  hun- 


t 


i 


'  >  ' 


138 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  UISTOV.Y. 


ili 


dred  horsemen,  marched  rapidly  to  the  relief  of  ''e  garrison.  At 
Tlascala  he  was  reinforced  by  two  thousand  of  tiic  hardy  warriors 
of  that  republic.  Thus  strengthened,  he  pushed  on  to  the  Valley 
with  all  speed,  and  soon  reached  the  great  city  of  Tezcuoo.  Every 
thing  betokened  an  ominous  change.  Very  few  inhabitants  were  to 
be  seen,  and  the  cold,  unfriendly  looks  of  those  evinced,  in  despite 
of  prudence,  the  extent  of  their  animosity.  On  the  24th  of  June, 
1520,  crossing  the  causeway,  Cortes,  riding  gloomily  at  the  head  of 
his  columns,  reentered  Mexico.  The  utter  desertion  and  silence  uf 
the  streets  afforded  a  striking  contrast  to  the  eager  and  multitudinous 
manner  in  which  they  had  been  thronged  '^n  his  first  memorable 
entrance  into  that  ill-fated  city.  Arrived  at  the  palace,  he  answered 
sternly  to  the  relation  of  Alvarado,  "You  have  done  badly.  You 
have  been  false  to  ^  Dur  trust.  Your  conduct  has  been  that  of  a 
madman."  Me  refused  to  listen  or  speak  to  Montezuma,  who  came 
to  offer  his  welcome,  and  the  captive  emperor,  deeply  wounded  and 
offended,  retired  to  his  apartment.  The  conduct  of  Cortes,  on  this 
his  second  visit  to  the  capital,  evinces  a  degree  of  passion  and  irri- 
tability of  which  we  find  few  exhibitions  in  his  whole  career,  and 
which  was  due  partly  to  the  insolence  of  suddenly-acquired  power, 
and  in  part  to  the  extraordinary  perplexities  of  his  position. 

More  than  twelve  hundred  Spaniards  and  eight  thousand  Tlasca- 
lans  were  now  crowded  in  the  palace  of  Axayacatl,  scantily  supplied 
with  food,  and  utterly  shunned  by  the  Mexican  population.  To  a 
renewed  request  for  an  interview  by  Montezuma,  Cortes,  to  the  dis- 
pleasure of  his  own  captains,  fiercely  answered,  "Away  with  him! 
the  dog!  why  does  he  neglect  to  supply  us?  *  *  What  do 
I  owe,"  he  fiercely  continued,  in  answer  to  their  remonstrances,  "to 
a  dog  who  treated  secretly  with  Narvaez,  and  who  ncglocLs  to  send 
provisions?  Go  tell  your  master  and  his  people,"  he  .^aid,  turning 
furiou.sly  to  the  Aztec  caciques,  "to  open  the  markets,  or  we  will  do 
it  for  then.,  and  to  their  cost."  This  haughty  message,  faithfully 
reported,  increased  the  sullenness  of  the  aggrieved  ^^exic:lns;  and 
Cortes,  at  a  suggestion  of  Montezuma,  (lisinis.sed  his  brother  Cuitla- 
hua,  who  ha<l  been  captured  with  Cacama,  to  treat  with  the  populace 
in  behalf  of  the  Sj)aniards. 

But  the  relea.sed  cacicpie,  a  man  of  brave  and  patriotic  character, 
and  the  destined  successor  to  the  throne,  so  Hir  fn»ii  fulfilling  hih 
invidious  oonuuissitjn,  at  once  took  coniinand  of  the  insurgents,  and 
encouraged  them  to  a  general  assault.     The  effect  was  almost  imtne- 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  H18T0KY   OF  MEXICO. 


139 


diutc.  Every  roof  and  terrace  surrounding  the  palace  was  soon 
covered  with  a  dense  throng  of  Aztec  warriors,  who  sent  showeva 
of  missiles  among  the  garrison,  and  every  avenue  was  tilled  with  a 
strong  column,  moving  on,  with  fierce  yells  and  whistlings,  to  the 
assault.  Kegardless  of  the  repeated  discharges  of  artillery,  by  which 
hundreds  were  swept  away,  they  pressed  up  to  the  rampart.  "Some 
put  themselves,"  says  a  Spanish  author,  '"ith  disparaging  acknowl- 
edgment, "under  the  very  Cannon,  and  assaulted  with  incredible 
Resolution,  making  Use  of  their  flinted  Instruments  to  break  the 
Gates,  and  pick  the  Walls;  Some  got  upoa  their  Companions' 
Shoulders  to  come  within  reoch  of  their  Weapons;  Others  made 
Ladders  of  their  own  Lances  and  Pikes  to  gain  the  Windows  and 
Terraces;  and  all  in  general  exposed  themselves  to  Fire  and  Sword 
like  enrag'd  Beasts.  Notable  Instances  of  a  fearless  Temerity,  and 
wliich  might  have  passed  fvr  rjallani  Actions,  had  true  Valour  perforraed 
that,  which,  in  Jiealiti/,  ivas  no  otiier  t/ian  a  salvage  Ferocity. ^^ 

All  day  the  contest  raged  with  great  fury,  the  Indians  battering 
the  ramparts  with  timbers,  and  pressing  on,  regardless  of  havoc 
iiuide  in  their  dense  ranks  by  the  artillery.  They  burned  the  com- 
bustible portion  of  the  palace,  and  drove  back  the  Spaniards,  who, 
under  Diego  Ordaz,  made  a  determined  sally,  with  considerable  loss, 
^(ightfull,  according  to  the  custom  of  Anahuac,  stayed  the  assault; 
but  curly  the  next  morning  the  square  and  its  approaches  were  again 
lillcd  with  warriors,  orderly  arrayed  under  the  great  standard  of 
Mexico,  and  commanded  by  the  fierce  Cuitlahua  in  person.  The 
Spanish  gcnerui,  as  they  approached,  ordered  a  general  discharge  of 
musketry  and  artillery,  .'ind  then,  with  the  most  efficient  portion  of 
his  army,  sallied  forth,  and  charged  furiously  into  the  dense  columns 
of  the  enemy,  lie  drove  them  to  a  barricade,  which  wvs  levelled 
by  the  artillery,  and  a  conflict  ensued,  hand  to  hand,  with  sucli  des- 
peration and  recklessness  of  life  as  the  Spaniards  had  never  witnessed 
before.  '"Some  of  our  Soldiers  who  had  been  in  Italy  swore,"  says 
Diaz,  "that  neither  among  Christians  or  Turks,  nor  the  King  of 
France's  artillery,  had  they  ever  seen  such  desperation  as  was  mani- 
letted  in  the  attacks  of  those  Indians."  So  great  was  the  number  of 
the  Mexicans,  that  no  amount  of  slaughter  weakened  thr'r  strength 
— fresh  warriors  continually  pressing  to  the  combat,  and  every  canal 
swarming  with  canoes,  ready  to  carry  off  prisoners  for  sacrifice. 
Nearly  tlio  whole  day  was  s{)cnf.  in  this  terrible  conflict,  but  the 
Spaniaida  and  Tlascalans,  after  buruiug  several  hundred  houses, 


*' 


m 


■'?'l,. 


II 


140 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


iiiially,  with  much  loss,  rSgained  their  fortress.  At  nightfall,  as 
asual,  the  besiegers  ceased  hostilities,  with  the  exception  of  showers 
of  arrows,  which  they  kept  up  during  the  night,  with  shrill  cries 
and  whistlings.  Their  wild  animals,  they  assured  the  Spaniards, 
had  been  kept  fasting  for  two  days,  to  devour  them.  They  made 
many  other  threats,  equally  terrifying  to  the  imagination,  and,  at 
times,  with  a  child-like  vacillation  of  feeling,  would  plaintively  en- 
treat that  their  king  might  be  released  to  them. 

Another  desperate  attempt  was  made,  the  next  morning,  to  take 
the  palace  by  storm ;  but  all  who  succeeded  in  scaling  the  w/'^a  were 
slain  by  those  within.  Cortes,  founding  some  hope  on  the  uevoted 
loyalty  which  the  people  exhibited,  now  resolved  to  try  the  effect 
of  the  emperor's  intercession  in  person.  The  unfortunate  Monte- 
zuma was  exceedingly  reluctant  to  make  the  attempt,  alleging  that 
tne  j)eople  would  never  listen  to  him,  nor  suffer  a  Spaniard  to  leave 
the  walls  alive.  Overpowered  at  length  by  repeated  persuasion,  he 
]>ut  on,  for  the  last  time,  his  magnificent  robes  of  state,  and  with  a 
few  Aztec  nobles,  who  still  fjiithfully  attended  on  his  person,  pro- 
ceeded to  the  battlements.  "A  change,  like  magic,  came  over  the 
scene.  The  clang  of  instruments,  the  fierce  cries  of  the  assailants, 
were  hushed,  and  a  death-like  stillness  pervaded  the  whole  assembly, 
so  fiercely  agitated,  but  a  few  moments  before,  by  the  wild  tumult 
of  war.  Many  prostrated  themselves  on  the  ground;  others  bent  the 
knee;  and  all  turned  with  eager  expectation  toward  the  monarch 
whom  they  had  been  taught  to  reverence."* 

Montezuma,  in  a  composed,  royal,  and  paternal  manner,  addressed 
the  vast  multitude,  which  listened  in  the  most  absolute  silence.  The 
S[)aniards,  he  assured  them,  would  depart  as  soon  as  a  way  was  peace- 
fully opened.  He  commanded  them  to  lay  down  their  arms  and 
retire  to  their  homes;  the  strangers  should  return  to  their  own  land, 
and  all  should  be  well  again  in  the  walls  of  Teuochtitlaii.  As  he 
concluded,  four  principal  caciques  came  forward,  and,  with  touching 
loyalty,  lamented  his  mislortunes  and  cajitivity.  Their  ])rayers,  they 
said,  were  daily  offered  for  his  .safety;  but  they  had  sworn  to  their 
g(«ls  the  destruction  of  every  Spaniard.  They  would  yet  rescue  hij[n, 
and  venerate  him  as  before,  and  trusted  that  he  would  pardon  their 
b-"s.s.  But  the  more  fenx-ious  .sjtirits  in  the  crowd,  enraged  at 
ig  their  emperor  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  now  rai.sed  a  storm 
vective.     Stones  began  to  fly,  and  though  the  Spaniards  hastily 

*  Prt'»cott's  Co'.quesjl  of  )Iexicu. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  IlISTOKY   OF  MEXICO. 


Ui 


put  up  their  bucklers  to  sliielJ  liis  person,  the  unhappy  prince  re- 
ceived three  wounds,  one  in  the  head,  which  laid  him  senseless  on 
the  rampart.  Horror-stricken  at  this  act  of  sacrilege,  the  vast  mul- 
titude simultaneously  uttered  a  terrible  cry  or  groan,  which  resounded 
through  the  whole  city,  and  theii,  dispersing  in  all  directions,  left 
the  square  utterly  deserted.  Their  ill-fated  monarch,  borne  to  his 
apartment,  was  recovered  from  his  swoon,  but  only  to  fall  into  an 
agony  of  grief  at  the  treatment  ho  had  undergone.  He  tore  the 
bandages  from  his  head  as  often  as  they  were  applied,  refused  all 
food  or  medicine,  and  was  evidently  determined  to  end  his  life  and 
dignity  together. 

The  attack,  awhile  suspended  by  this  melancholy  incident,  was 
ere  long  renewed  with  fresh  fury,  and  from  the  great  teocalli,  com- 
■nanding  the  palace,  a  perfect  tempest  of  stones  and  arrows  was 
showered  upon  the  garrison.  With  the  boldness  of  desperation, 
Cortes  rcsoi  /ed  on  taking  it  by  storm,  and  with  three  hundred  cav- 
aliers, and  several  thousand  Tlascalans,  Tiade  a  furious  sortie  from 
his  fort.  The  summit  was  only  to  be  gained  by  a  winding  pathway, 
a  mile  in  length,  four  times  encircling  the  vast  edifice;  and  as  the 
Spaniards  slowly  forced  their  way  along,  huge  stones,  beams,  and 
every  species  of  missHe,  came  thundering  on  their  heads  from  above. 
By  desperate  exertions  tliey  finally  gained  the  great  plateau  of  the 
temp'e,  where,  in  full  view  of  the  whole  city  and  the  belenguored 
garrison,  a  combat,  hand  to  hand,  was  maintained  with  the  utmost 
valour  and  esolution  by  both  parties,  for  the  space  of  three  hours. 
There  was  no  parapet  on  its  verge,  and  the  combatants,  in  the  lioat  of 
their  engagement,  frequently  missed  their  footing,  and  met  a  horrible 
death  on  the  rocky  pavement  below.  "  Here,"  says  Diaz,  with  enthu- 
siasm, "Cortes  showed  himself  the  man  he  really  was!  what  a  des- 
perate engagement  we  had  there!  every  man  of  us  covered  with 
bl(K)d,  and  above  forty  dead  upon  the  spot."  Victory  liually  declared 
for  the  Spaniards  and  their  allies,  every  one  of  the  many  hundreds 
of  Aztec  warriors  who  had  manned  the  post  being  slain  or  hurled 
from  the  summit.  The  image  of  the  war-god  was  al&v>  .lung  down 
among  his  wc  shippens,  and  the  sanctuary  was  fired;  after  which, 
many  of  his  men  being  dead,  and  all  badly  wou:ided,  Cortes,  with 
great  dilficulty,  regained  his  quarters.  That  same  night,  he  made 
another  sally,  anci  burned  three  hundred  houses — no  easy  task,  a.«, 
from  the  nature  of  their  construction,  each  dwelling  was  necessarily 
fired  separately. 


«v 


142  THK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


CORTES   PEEPARES   TO   LKATE   THE  CITY.  —  DEATH   OP   MONTE 

ZUMA. — THE   "NOCHE    TRISTE,"    OR    MISERABLE    NIGHT. — 

GREAT  SLAUGHTER  OP  SPANIARDS  AND   TLASCALANS  ON 

TH^'  CAUSEWAY  OP  TACUBA.  —  THK   RETREAT  TO   TLAS- 

CALA.  —  BATTLE  OP  OTUMBA,  AND  EXTRAORDINARY 

VICTORY  OP  THE  SPANIARDS. 

Though  his  situation  wns  evidently  getting  dosperato,  the  Spanish 
leader  thought  it  prudent  to  preserve  a  confident  demeanour,  and 
accordingly  proposed  j)eace  to  the  Mexicuns,  but  only  on  the  condi- 
tion of  their  submission,  tlircatening  that  otherwine  he  would  destroy 
their  city  and  every  soul  of  its  inhabitants.  But  the  besiegers,  with 
equal  spirit,  answered,  that  if  they  could  only  kill  a  single  Spaniard 
for  the  loss  of  every  thousand  of  their  own  people,  it  would  bo 
enough,  for  they  had  computed  his  number  and  their  own.  "The 
bridges,"  they  added,  "are  broken  down,  and  you  cannot  escape. 
There  will  be  too  few  of  you  lefl  to  glut  the  vengeance  of  our  goils." 
An  immediate  retreat,  though  involving  the  utmost  hazard,  was  now 
resolved  on;  and  it  was  determined  to  attempt  forcing  an  outlet  by 
the  catiseway  of  'IMacopan  or  Tacuba,  the  shortest,  and  therefore  the 
.oafest  of  the  several  approaches  to  the  city.  To  clear  the  principal 
street,  leading  to  this  precarious  means  of  egres.s,  a  huge  tower  on 
wheels  was  constructed,  and,  tilled  with  arnr^  Spaniards,  waa  rolled 
along  to  attack  the  enemy  on  the  terraces,  After  some  days  of  des- 
jierat(>ly  hard  fighting,  in  which  Cortes  and  the  other  cavaliers  dis- 
tingui.«hed  themselves  by  the  utmost  bravery,  no  less  than  seven 
canals,  by  which  the  street  wn.s  cros.sed,  had  been  filled  up,  and  the 
passage  to  the  cau.seway  was  at  last  considered  clear. 

The  life  of  the  unhappy  Montezuma,  who,  preserving  an  utter 
silence,  firmly  rejw^ted  all  food  or  medicine,  was  fast  drawing  to  its 
clo.se.  The  worthy  Father  Olmedo  and  others,  with  a  generou.s, 
though  mi.«takeri  anxiety  for  his  salvation,  used  every  eflbrt  to  induce 
him  to  profess  the  faith ;  but  he  waved  the  crucifix  aside,  and  finally 
s.iid,  roMIy,  "  I  have  but  a  few  moments  to  live,  and  will  not  at  thia 
liDur  desert  the  fuith  of  inv  fathers."     He  then  entreated  Cortes  to 


Til 

protect  his 
Spanish  m( 
will  do  this 
rendered  to 
it  has  brou; 
ill-will." 
June,  1520, 
"Of  all 


none,  perhf 
sovereign  o 
erence,  han 
hand  of  a  n 
of  humiliat 
his  own  dis 
quistadors,' 
niclartcholy 
had  .so  oftei 
had  oecasio 
'and  he  wa 
him,  us  if  1 
iii[/  I/ow  got 
to  '.  io  pcoj 
and  lament 
L;ist  of  the 
The  nigh 
hasty  prepii 
and  eighty 
still  remain 
dier  take  w 
remain  for 
the  new  co 
cnmbrance 
burden  wh 
and  in  the 
pr.ssible,  d 
first  ranks 
given  by  i 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   0?  MEXICO. 


113 


protect  liig  children,  and  endeavour  to  secure  to  them,  from  tho 
Spatiisli  monarch,  some  portion  of  their  inheritance.  "Your  lord 
will  do  this,"  he  said,  "if  it  were  only  for  the  friendly  offices  I  have 
rendered  to  the  Spaniards,  and  the  love  I  have  shown  tlietn — though 
it  has  brouf^ht  me  to  this  condition!  But  for  this  I  bear  them  no 
ill-will."  Having  ppoken  these  words,  he  expired,  on  the  30th  of 
June,  1520,  at  the  ago  of  forty-one,  after  a  reign  of  eighteen  years. 
"Of  all 

•  Sad  stories  of  tho  denth  of  kings,' 

none,  perhaps,  is  more  strange  and  affecting  than  that  of  this  ill-fated 
sovereign  of  a  half-civilizod  empire,  in  the  midst  of  a  universal  rev- 
t^renoe,  hardly  short  of  adoration,  so  suddenly  struck  down  by  the 
hand  of  a  mysterious  Destiny,  and  doomed,  after  drinking  the  dregs 
of  humiliation  at  the  hands  of  liis  op{)ressors,  to  perish  by  those  of 
his  own  distracted  people.  Fierce  and  rude  as  wore  the  old  'Con- 
quistadors,' they  appear  to  have  felt  some  natural  compunction  at  the 
nielartcholy  fate  of  one  whose  generous  and  hospitable  spirit  they 
had  so  often  experienced,  and  whose  utter  ruin  their  own  violence 
had  occasioned.  'Cortes  and  our  captains  wept  for  him,'  says  Diaz, 
'and  he  was  lamented  by  them  and  all  the  soldiers  who  had  known 
him,  as  if  he  liad  been  their  father;  nor  is  it  to  be  wondered  at,  see- 
hi'j  hoio  good  Ite  wa.i.^  His  remains,  royally  attired,  were  delivered 
to  !  !o  people,  and  were  borne  away.  A  distant  sound  of  wailing 
and  lamentation  was  heard;  but,  to  this  day,  the  resting-place  of  the 
Lust  of  the  Moutozumas  is  forgotten  and  unknown."* 

The  night  of  the  following  day  (July  1st)  proving  dark  and  stormy, 
liasty  preparation  was  made  for  departure.  Eight  wounded  horses 
and  eighty  Tlascalans  were  loaded  with  treasure:  but  a  vast  quantity 
still  remained  scattered  on  the  floor  of  the  palace.  "Let  every  sol- 
dier take  what  he  will,"  said  Cortes;  "better  so,  than  that  it  should 
remain  for  these  dogs  of  Mexicans."  Most  of  the  soldiery,  especially 
the  now  comers,  hastened  to  '  )ad  themselves  with  the  precious  en- 
cumbrance; though  the  veterans  were  more  wary  in  assuming  a 
burden  which  might  prove  so  fatal.  Mass  was  solemnly  performed, 
and  in  the  dead  of  night,  the  relics  of  the  two  armies,  as  quietly  as 
possible,  dehled  into  the  streets,  which  were  quite  deserted.  The 
fust  ranks  had  emerged  on  to  the  cause .vay,  when  the  alarm  was 
given  by  a  sentinel.     "The  Teules  are  goMig!"  was  yelled  by  a 

•  Discoverers,  &.C.,  of  America. 


144 


THE  I'fcOl'LE'S   BOOK   OF  IIISTOKY. 


Imndrcd  voices.  Tlic  great  tlrum  itti  the.  tcociilli*  sent  fi)rtli  it* 
(iJHinal  Hourul,  uti>l  with  tho  »vvif\ii(-ss  of  eiichaiitineiit  au  iiitiutnrr- 
able  swarm  of  Aztec  warriors,  with  fierce  wlioops  and  wliistliH^rs^ 
cltaed  round  the  devotrcl  columns  both  by  hind  and  water.  Willi 
admirable  strategy',  though  doubtless  fully  prepared,  they  hud 
deferred  their  lussuult  until  the  moment  when  it  could  bo  made  with 
the  moat  fatal  effect. 

Fighting  t'loir  way  valiantly,  the  Spaniards  soon  came  to  a  breach 
in  the  causeway,  and,  in  the  midst  of  a  storm  of  missiles,  succeeded 
in  laying  across  it  a  stroirg  portable  bridge,  constructed  for  such  an 
emergenc} .  <  )ver  this  the  whole  army  slowly  defiled,  defending  them- 
selves with  desperate  valour  ajjainst  the  Aztecs,  who,  from  both  sides, 
attacked  them  fiercely,  running  their  canoes  against  the  causeway 
with  such  fury  as  to  dash  them  asunder.  Another  breach,  ere  loiit;, 
arrested  their  j)rogrc8s,  and  when  the  rear-guanl  attempted  to  rai.sc 
the  bridge,  it  was  found,  by  the  pressure  of  the  heavy  artillery,  t  > 
be  immovably  wedged  between  the  piers.  The  Indians  redoubled 
their  attacks,  and  the  whole  mtiss  of  fugitives  pressing  forward,  forced 
the  front  ranks  into  the  second  clwusm,  which  gradually  became  filled 
with  cannon,  wagons,  and  the  bodies  of  men  and  horses.  Over  this 
horrible  wreck  the  survivors  .slowly  struggled,  but  only  to  be  sttjpped 
by  a  third  breach,  which  finally  was  filled  up  in  the  same  hideous  man- 
ner. During  all  this  time,  the  ^fexicaiis  were  busy  in  dragging  victims 
into  their  canoes  and  hurrying  them  off  for  sacrifice.  Indeed,  to  the 
intense  anxiety  which  they  felt  for  this  object,  the  Spaniard.s,  in 
these  wars,  were  freipiently  indebted  for  their  lives;  for  the  hope  of 
offering  the  hearts  of  the  detested  strangers  to  their  gods  frequently 
induced  them  to  relincjuish  the  certainty  of  slaughter  for  a  bare 
chnnce  of  making  prisoners. 

During  all  the  reniiiinder  of  this  terrible  night  (still  known  as  the 
Kwhe  Tri!-U\)  the  relics  of  the  Spanish  ancl  Tlascalan  force,  using 
their  weapons  with  the  resolution  of  despair,  worked  their  way 
onward,  and  by  day-light  gained  the  firm  land.  Cortes,  on  beholding 
how  few  were  left,  covered  his  face  wilii  his  hand.s,  and  burst  into 
tears.  Four  hundred  and  fifty  Spaniards,  in  this  frightful  piussage, 
had  been  slain  or  carried  off  for  sacrifice,  and,  with  the  previous 

*  This  drum,  of  itnmcnHe  1117.0,  wna  mitdc  of  the  akins  of  Merpentn,  and  was  beaten 
only  on  the  niuHl  HoU-iiin  occaaiona.  Ita  deep  and  melancholy  tonea  could  be  heard 
for  ieiijfuc'H. 

t  "Sad,"  or  "Terrible  Night" 


THE  G 

losses,  only  a  t 

iiuiined.     Four 

with  their  losse 

of  their  origina 

and  nothing  wi 

Bwords  witii  wi 

But  for  the  e 

they  proecedec 

remains  of  tho 

In  the  middle  ( 

a  temple  in  wh 

ous  route  towa 

ger,  and  faligu 

the  enemy,  on 

mountain  over 

was  enough,  it 

ttieir  homes  ir 

them,  filled  the 

il  liie  appearaii 

but  the  con  rag 

address,  invok 

his  people  (low 

So  furious  w 

that  it  broke  i 

rounded  on  al 

with  tlie  fury 

JUS  dearly  as  p< 

tory,  attacked 

says  lione.sl  L 

loot  to  foot,  ai 

was  fortunate 

cavaliers — ('01 

tfiect;  ai\d  by 

were  coii.spicu 

they  .'iueeeedei 

test  raged  for 

faii;.nic,  were  \ 

Icailer  redeen 

Cortes  at  last 

ard,  directing 

Vol 


THK  CONQUEST  AND   UlSTOUY   OK   MKXIOO. 


iir, 


losscH,  only  a  lliird  of  tho  nutnbiT  wliicli  had  ontored  tlio  city  n;- 
nmiiied.  Four  tliuusuiul  Tlu.sc;aluiis  Itad  met  tho  »umo  iUto,  and  tliis, 
with  tlieir  loHacs  in  thu  wiogo,  rcilucud  their  ranks  to  Ichs  than  a  fourth 
of  thrir  original  nunibor.  All  tho  artillery  and  inuskots  were  lost, 
anil  nothing  waa  loft  tho  wearied  and  wounded  adventurers  hut  tho 
Bworda  with  which  they  had  howed  their  way  through  the  enemy. 

But  for  the  exultation  of  tho  victorn,  and  the  eagerness  with  which 
they  proccedeil  to  celebrate  their  triumph  by  Hacrifice,  the  feeble 
remains  of  tho  invading  force  might  easily  have  been  overwhelmed. 
In  tho  middle  of  the  following  night,  Cortes  led  forth  liis  men  from 
a  temple  in  which  they  had  taken  refuge,  and  marched  by  a  circuit- 
ous route  toward  Tlascala.  Sufl'ering  grievously  from  wound.s,  hun- 
ger, and  fatigue,  and  diminished  in  number  by  desultory  attacks  of 
the  enemy,  on  the  7th  of  July  they  arrived  at  the  summit  of  a 
mountain  overlooking  tho  Valley  of  Otumba.  Tlio  view  it  alTorded 
was  enougli,  it  might  seem,  to  quench  the  last  hope  of  ever  reaching 
their  homes  in  safety.  An  immense  army,  prepared  to  intercept 
them,  filli'(l  the  valley,  antl  being  clad  in  white  cotton  doublets,  gave 
it  the  aj-pearance  of  a  held  of  snow.  Nothing  remained  for  the  allies 
but  the  courage  of  desperation ;  and  Cortes,  after  a  brief  but  tirring 
address,  invoked  the  protection  of  the  Virgin  and  St.  Jago,  and  led 
his  people  down  the  mountain. 

So  furious  was  the  charge  of  the  little  Spanish  and  Tlascalan  force, 
that  it  broke  into  the  den.se  mass  of  the  Aztec  army,  and  lliere,  sur- 
rouniled  on  all  sides  by  overwhelming  nundjers,  fought  hand  to  hand 
with  the  fury  of  despair.  All  were  determined  to  .sell  their  lives 
as  dearly  as  possible,  and  the  enemy,  exidtant  with  their  recent  vic- 
tory, attacked  with  extraonlinary  fn'rceness.  "Oh,  what  it  wa.s," 
Hays  honest  Diaz,  "to  see  this  tremendous  battle!  how  we  closed 
foot  to  foot,  and  with  what  fury  the  dogs  fought  us!"  Tho  ground 
was  fortunately  level,  which  eiudded  the  little  band  of  surviving 
cavaliers — Cortes,  Olid,  Sandoval  and  others — to  charge  with  k'-  'd 
ellt'ct;  and  by  directing  their  a.ssault  entirely  against  the  chiefs,  who 
were  conspicuous  by  their  plumes,  rich  arms,  and  golden  ornaments, 
they  succeeded  iu  greatly  di.sordering  the  Mexican  ranks.  The  con- 
test raged  for  several  hours,  and  the  allies,  fainting  with  wounds  and 
faii^Mie,  were  almost  overpowered,  wii.n  a  brilliant  exploit  of  their 
leader  redeemed  the  day.  Looking  eagerly  for  the  chief  cacique, 
Cortes  at  last  espied  him,  in  a  litter,  accompanied  by  the  great  stand- 
ard, directing  the  fight  Followed  by  the  other  horsemen,  he  charged 
Vol.  III.— 10 


'lii^ 


wt*., 


U(3 


THE  PEOl'LF.'S  P.OOK  OK   IIISTOUY. 


with  fury,  broke  tlirougli  llio  ranks  of  his  atteiulants,  and,  witli  a  blow 
of  liis  lance,  dashed  him  to  tlie  earth.  The  banner  was  taken,  and 
so  groat  a  panic  seized  his  forces  at  this  ominous  misfortune,  that  they 
gave  ground  and  retreated,  leaving  the  field  cumbered  with  dead 
bodies,  yielding  the  richest  spoil.  This  victory  over  a  foe  so  vastly 
superior  in  numbers,  is  ])erhaps  the  most  remarkable  of  any  in  these 
wars,  as  it  was  gained  without  the  almost  resistless  advantage  of 
artillery  or  any  descrii)tion  of  lire-arms. 


CEAPTEH   XL 


PIDKLTTY  OP  THE  TT,ASC.\LAN  CHIEFS. — RFSOI.UTTOX  OF  COKTES. 
THE  WAR  RENEWED. OREAT  SITCESSES  OF   THE   SPAN- 
IARDS.  SAGACIOUS  rOI.ICY  OF  CORTES.  —  HE    ACQUIRES 

A  GREAT  FORCE  OP  NATIVK  ALLIES. DEATH  OF  CUITLA- 

HUA,   AXD   ACCF'^SIOX  OF  GUATEMOZIN  TO  THE  AZTEC 

THRONE. — COItTES    MARCHES   TO   THE  VALLEY  OF 

MEXICO  — TA  KES  UP  HIS  QUARTERS  AT  TEZCUCO. 

Ariuvki)  at  Tlascala,  the  relics  of  tho  force  were  received  with 
unlH)un<led  kindness  aud  h(>s])itality,  and  the  chiefs  of  that  nation 
assured  Cortes  that  they  would  stand  by  him  to  the  death.  Kccov- 
ering  with  difliculty  from  a  dangerous  fever,  brought  on  by  his 
wounds,  he  learned  <jf  fresli  misfortunes — forty-five  of  the  garrison 
of  A'cra  Cruz,  marching  to  join  him,  having  been  cut  off,  with  tho 
lo.'^s  of  much  treasure — and  twelve  t)thers  having  been  slain  in  Tep- 
eaca.  His  followers,  "cursing  the  gold  they  had  left  in  the  ditches 
of  Mexico,"  clamored  for  a  return  to  Cuba,  and  sent  in  a  formal 
remonstrance,  attested  by  a  notary,  against  attempting  any  thing 
further.  But  desjiite  these  discourat-Miig  einrumstances  and  his  own 
feeble  condition,  their  iron-souled  general  had  determined  on  using 
every  eirort  to  wrest  back  tl  e  splemlid  prize,  gained  by  such  daring 
and  fortune,  and  lost  with  such  ruinous  defeat  With  liis  accustomed 
fire  and  eloquence,  he  replied  to  the  malcontents,  "giving  at  k'a.st 
ten  reasons  for  his  phm,  to  every  ono  which  they  alleged  against  it." 
His  commanding  influence  rcijfiserted  its  wonted  authority,  and  iho 


veteran  .=(,  at 


THE   CONQUEST  AND    HISTORY  OF  MEXICO, 


147 


veteran;^,  attached  to  his  person,  overawed  by  their  resolution  the 
murmurings  of  the  disaffected. 

On  tlie  death  of  Montezuma,  his  brother  Cuitlahua,  the  leader  of 
the  insurrection,  had  been  duly  elected  monarch  of  the  Aztecs. 
That  brave  and  [latriotic  cacique,  his  capital  repaired  and  fortified, 
now  sent  an  embassy,  bearing  presents,  to  the  Tlascalan  senato,  pro- 
jwsing  that  past  enmities  should  be  forgotten,  and  that  all  Analiuno 
shoulil  rise  to  complete  the  sacrifice  (brilliantly  commenced  at  his 
own  coronation)  of  the  detested  strangers.  After  a  fierce  debate 
among  the  caciques,  Xicotencatl  strongly  urging  an  acceptance  of 
the  proposed  alliance,  "ancient  enmity  proved  more  tfian  equal  to 
the  claims  of  jiolicy  or  religion."  The  overtures  of  Cuitlahua  were 
peremjitorily  rejected,  and  the  young  chief  who  had  advocated  their 
acceptance,  narrowly  escaped  witli  life  from  the  hands  of  his  er  raged 
fellow-counsellors. 

Cortes,  recovered  from  hi.-'  illness,  lost  no  time  in  resuming  the 
ofrensive.      With  four  hundred  Spaniards  and  as  many  thousand 
'riascalaus,  he  marched  against  Tepeaca,  defeated  the  peo[)le  of  that 
hostile  province  in  two  sanguinary  engagements,  entered  their  cap- 
ital in  triumpli,  and  leduced  great  numbers  of  tlie  citizens  to  slavery. 
]'<stal)lislicd  in  this  post,  he  made  frequent  sallies  into  the  adjoining 
j)rovinces,  taking  several  strong  places  by  storm,  and  putting  their 
garrisons  to  the  sword.      On  one  occasion,  he  defeated  a  force  of 
thirty  thousand  Mexicans,  who  had  been  sent  against  him,  and  by 
his  own  exertions  and  those  of  his  officers,  whom  he  dispatclicd  on 
frequent  expeditions,  succeeded  in  conquering  a  wide  extent  of  ter- 
ritoiy.     I  le  di.splayed  great  policy  in  his  treatment  of  the  vanquished, 
overlooking  former  offences,  and  attempting,  with  excellent  success, 
to  unite  them  all  in  a  league  against  tlie  Aztecs,  to  whom  they  had 
all  been  lately  subjected.     "Ever  since  his  expulsion  from  Mexico, 
the  .'>i)anish  leader  had  been  brooding  liercely  over  the  remembrance 
of  his  disastrous  retreat,  and  planning  new  means  to  achieve  the  sub- 
jection of  the  Aztecs.     That  powerful  and  justly-enraged  people,  he 
well  knew,  could  never  be  vanquished  by  the  handful  of  Spaniards 
who  remained,  though  the  surprise  of  superstition,  and  his  prompt, 
un.scrupulous  policy,  had  once  opened  the  gates  of  their  capital  to  a 
force  equally  insignificant.     But  to  the  powerful  alliance  of  Tlascala 
was  now  added  that  of  numerous  other  provinces,  united  by  his 
addres.s,  and  eager  for  plunder  and  revenge.      Remembering  the 
disasters  of  the  causeway,  he  now  resolved  to  attack  Mexico  by  water. 


mf 


^h 


SU&, 


U3 


THK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


lie  therefore  dispatched  his  ship-builder,  Martin  Lopez,  to  Tlascala, 
with  orders  to  construct  thirteen  brigautines,  using  the  iron  and  rig- 
ging which,  with  wonderful  forethought,  he  had  saved  from  the  two 
fleets  destroyed  at  Vera  Cruz."*  vn ;;.•>»!    •>;;,■ 

A  few  of  his  people,  who  could  not  bo  reconciled  to  persever- 
ance in  the  enterprise,  he  now  dismissedt  and  by  rare  good  fortune 
his  ranks  were  speedily  recruited.  From  two  additional  vessels 
which  Velasquez  had  dispatched,  and  which  his  partisans  entrapped 
lit  Vera  Cruz,  and  from  an  unsuccessful  expedition  from  Jamaica, 
he  gained  the  reinforcement  of  an  hundred  and  fifty  soldiers,  with 
a  good  .supply  of  horses,  arras,  and  ammunition.  He  again  wrote 
to  the  emperor,  of  whose  inclinations  he  yet  remained  totally  igno- 
rant, narrating  his  exploits  and  misfortunes,  avowing  his  inten- 
tion of  persevering  in  the  conquest,  and  requesting  that  the  regions 
added  by  his  arms  to  the  Spanish  crown  might  be  honoured  with 
the  title  of  New  Spain.  A  petition  for  the  confirmation  of  his 
authority,  signed  by  nearly  every  Spaniard  in  the  country,  was  dis- 
patched at  the  same  time.  Having  thus,  as  far  as  possible,  fortified 
his  interests  at  court,  the  Spanish  general  devoted  his  undivided 
energy  to  the  task  of  avenging  his  humiliation  and  completing 
the  conquest 

The  small-pox,  imported  in  the  fleet  of  Narvaez,  had,  as  usual 
among  a  jjcople  unaccustomed  to  its  virulence,  committed  terrible 
ravages  tliroughout  all  Anahuac.  Among  the  victims  wds  Cuitliuiua, 
who  perished  after  a  reign  of  only  four  months,  distinguished,  indeed, 
by  policy,  patriotism,  and  success.  The  caciques  then  elected  to 
the  sovereignty  the  famous  Guatemozin,  a  nephew  of  the  two  late 
emperors,  and,  though  young,  already  distinguished  for  his  courage, 
patriotism,  and  inveterate  enmity  to  the  Spaniards.  "Ue  was  a 
yimng  man,"  .says  one  who  often  saw  him,  "about  the  age  of  twenty- 
five  years,  of  elegant  appearance,  very  brave,  and  so  terrible  to  his 
own  subjecta  tliat  they  all  trembled  at  the  sight  of  him,"  This  fierce 
and  patriotic  prince,  from  the  r-ioment  of  his  accession,  devoted  every 
faculty  to  thi;  defence  of  his  country  and  the  extirpation  of  the  in- 
vaders. High  rewards  were  offered  for  every  Spaniard  who  should 
be  slain,  and  still  higher,  if  captured  for  sacrifice.  The  garrison  of 
Mexico  was  strengthened  and  di.Hciplined,  and  his  subjects  were  every 
where  conmiunded  to  bold  out  against  the  Invaders  to  the  lasL  TIk; 
whole  nation,  animated  by  his  intrepid  spirit,  resolved  on  resisting 

to  the   death.  •    nU«nv»r»ni.  a*     of  Am.ri«i. 


THE   CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


149 


The  army  of  Cortes,  reinforced  as  we  have  mentioned,  now 
amounted  to  less  than  six  hundred  Spaniards,  with  forty  horses 
and  nine  cannon — a  force  in  itself  preposterously  inadequate  to  the 
vast  exploit  of  subjecting  the  Aztec  empire.  But  from  Tlascala, 
Cholula,  Tepeaca,  and  other  conquered  or  allied  provinces,  a  vast 
swarm  of  native  warriors,  amounting,  it  is  said,  lo  a  hundred  thou- 
sand, and  already  partially  trained  in  European  discipline,  flocked 
to  his  standard.  Leaving  the  greater  part  of  those  levies  at  Tlascala, 
to  await  his  orders,  the  Spanish  chief,  on  the  28th  of  December, 
1520,  set  forth  on  his  second  invasion  of  the  Yalley  of  Mexico. 

Crossing  the  mountains  by  rugged  and  difficult  passes,  the  Span- 
iards once  more  came  in  view  of  that  beautiful  scene,  the  theatre  of 
such  marvellous  adventure  and  fatal  ftiisfortune.  "We  could  see," 
writes  Cortes  to  the  emperor,  "all  the  provinces  of  Mexico  and 
Temixtitan,  both  on  the  lakes  and  around  them.  But  although  we 
regarded  them  with  great  satisfaction,  this  feeling  was  not  unmixed 
with  sadness,  when  we  rScalled  the  losses  we  had  experienced  there, 
and  we  all  resolved  never  to  qu't  the  country  again  without  victory, 
even  should  it  cost  us  our  lives."  Meeting  little  opposition,  except 
from  desultory  parties  of  skirmishers,  the  invaders  approached  the 
city  of  Tezcuco,  which  was  destined  for  their  head-quarters.  Coan- 
aco,  sovereign  of  that  city,  (brother  to  Cacama,  who  perished  in  the 
"Noche  Triste,")  sent  a  friendly  message  to  the  advancing  army;  and 
on  the  30ih  of  December,  it  entered  the  city.  It  appeared  almost 
deserted,  and  from  the  summit  of  the  great  teocaUi,  the  Spaniards 
beheld  the  citizens  jiouring  forth  in  multitudes,  both  by  land  and 
water.  Great  numbers,  and  among  them  Coanaco  himself,  had  taken 
refuge  in  Mexico.  Many  relics  of  the  victims  of  sacrifice,  suspended 
in  the  temples — the  heads  and  hands  of  Spaniards,  and  the  shoes 
and  skins  of  their  lorses — horrified  the  survivors,  and  increased 
their  desire  for  vengeance. 


100 


TIIK   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


'.*    v.<v:i-     '.«»'i' 


uJ!j../lirx<iliiU    tAfXx. 


-^ 


■A    ?.;iji 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  MEXICO  RENEWED.  —  IZTAPALAPAN 

AND  OTHER  CITIES  TAKEN  BY  STORM. GREAT  ACCESSIONS 

TO  THE  POWER  OP  CORTES.  —  BRI0ANTINE8  TRANSPORTED 

OVERLAND    FROM    TLA8CALA.  —  MANY    BATTLES    WITH 

THE    AZTECS.  —  THEIR    RESOLUTION. — CORTES 

MARCHES     vUOUND   THE   LAKES,    .\  N  D   STORMS 

MANY      CITIES.  —  .\RRIVES      AT     TACUBA.  ,     j 

—  SINGULAR    DISPLAY    OF    EMOTION.  ,;  . 

IxTLiLXOCiiiTL,  a  fierce  and  warlike  cli'eftain,  who  bud  wrested 
from  his  brother  Cacaiua  no  small  portion  of  territory,  presently 
succeeded,  by  the  authority  of  Cortes,  to  the  sovereignty  of  the 
entire  province  of  Tezcuco.  Influenced  by  ambition  and  ancient 
enmity,  he  became  a  firm  ally  of  the  Spaniards,  and,  with  his  people, 
in  the  events  which  followed,  rendered  them  the  most  important 
services.  All  was  uc  •  eager  and  active  preparation  for  the  cam- 
paign. Eiglit  thousand  Indians  were  employed  in  digging  a  eanul 
to  the  lake,  which  was  half  a  league  from  the  city,  fur  the  purpose 
of  securely  launching  the  brigantines,  when  completed.  C<.»rto8  re- 
solved to  eonnnence  operations,  by  overpowering,  one  at  a  time,  the 
many  cities  surrounding  the  lakes,  in  the  hands  of  the  Aztecs,  and 
thus  gradually  compelling  them  to  take  refuge  in  their  capital.  lie 
first  marched  with  a  strong  force  against  Iztapalapan,  formerly  the 
eapitjil  v^  Cuitlahua,  a  city  of  fifty  thousand  inhabitants;  an(l  first 
defeating  a  large  force  wliich  defended  it  without,  look  the  place  by 
storm.  Six  thousand,  including  woiaen  and  children,  perished  under 
the  ven-^eful  weapons  of  tlie  Spaniards  and  their  allies.  Tiie  town 
waa  aho  s»t  on  fire;  but  the  exultation  of  tiie  victors  was  damped 
by  the  despair  of  the  vanquished,  wlio,  as  a  hist  resource,  destroyed 
their  dikes,  and  floutled  the  place  with  water.  So  sudden  was  the 
111:  ndation,  that  they  escaped  with  much  difficulty,  wet  to  the  skin, 
•.villi  tlie  I0.SS  of  all  their  'nununitiun  and  plunder.  Moreover,  a 
large  detachment  from  tlie  garri.<on  of  ^fexico,  crossing  in  canoe.'', 
attacked  them  fiercely  at  daybreak,  and  they  returned,  with  cunsid- 
eralile  loss,  U)  Tezcuet). 
.    Many  cities  ami  j.rovinccs  now,  from  dread  of  his  arma  or  enmity 


Tiu: 

to  the  Aztec  r 
city  of  Chalec 
ble  importanc 
Guatemozin  r 
his  dctcrminai 
the  retention  ( 
iard  who  fell  i 
in  canoes,  sust 

Early  in  tin 
were  cornpleli 
under  the  ca( 
nearly  Jia  man 
in  Tezcuco. 
escort  contint 
Tlascalal  Lor 
ii.s  we  hav  "/  se 
tue  unfortuna 
vessels  over  t 

Strengthen( 
while  the  vcss 
paign  against 
and  the  whole 
lying  in  the  li 
causeways.  ''. 
which  they  f 
canoes,  and,  c 
to  retreat.  I 
town,  which 
and  devoting 

Next,  the  a 
after  twice  di 
up  their  temp' 
misfortunes,  t 
artful  maiKeii 
so  fatal  to  hii 
multitude  of  ^ 
cacitiues  fiere 
asked  when 
loaded,"  he  v 
go  in,  and  cr 


THE  CONCiUEST  AND   llllSTOUY   OF   MEXICO. 


1.11 


to  the  Aztec  rule,  gave  in  tlvir  adhesion  to  Cortes;  among  them  the 
citj  of  Chalco,  lying  on  the  lake  of  that  name,  a  place  of  considera- 
ble importance.  To  his  dcmand.s  for  the  surrender  of  the  capital, 
Guiitemozin  returned  an  obstinate  silence;  but  sufficiently  showed 
his  determination  by  energetic  efforts  for  the  defence  of  his  city  and 
the  retention  of  bis  tributaries,  as  well  as  by  sacrificing  every  Span- 
iard who  fell  into  his  hands.  His  people,  however,  crossing  the  lake 
in  canoes,  sustained  several  severe  defeats  from  the  allied  forces. 

Early  in  the  .-ipring  of  1521,  the  brigantines,  thirteen  in  number, 
were  completed  at  Tlascalr.  Protected  by  ten  thousand  warriors, 
under  the  cacique  Chichemecati,  they  were  carried  piecemeal,  by 
nearly  aa  many  labourers,  over  the  mountains,  and  safely  deposited 
in  Tezcuco.  For  half  a  day,  the  long  lines  of  porters  and  their 
escort  continued  to  file  into  that  city,  with  shouts  of  "Castile  and 
Tlascala!  Long  live  the  emperor!"  Tliis  extraordinary  undertaking, 
as  we  hav "/  seen,  had  been  alread;  achieved,  on  a  smaller  scale,  by 
tne  unfortunate  Balboa,  who,  five  years  before,  had  transported  his 
vessels  over  the  Isthmus,  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 

Strengthened  by  the  arrival  of  these  au.'iliaries,  Cortes  resolved, 
while  the  vessels  were  being  put  together,  on  making  a  brisk  cam- 
paign against  the  enemy.  With  rather  more  than  half  his  Spaniards 
and  the  whole  force  of  natives,  he  attacked  Xaltocan,  a  strong  city, 
lying  in  the  lake  of  that  name,  and  accessible  from  the  land  only  by 
causeways.  The  assailants,  stopped  by  an  impassable  breach  in  that 
which  they  attempted  to  cross,  were  surrounded  on  all  sides  by 
canucs,  and,  overwiiehned  with  showers  of  missiles,  were  compelled 
to  retreat.  By  means  of  a  ford,  however,  they  finally  gained  tlic 
town,  which  they  U)ok  by  storm,  putting  the  garrison  to  the  swoi'd, 
and  devoting  the  place  to  plunder  and  conflagration. 

Next,  the  allies  marched,  v/ith  little  resistance,  to  Taeiiba,  where, 
after  twice  defeating  the  Aztec  force  which  protected  it,  they  took 
up  their  temporary  (piarters.  The  Mexicans,  undiscouraged  by  tlicii 
misfortunes,  engaged  them  daily,  w.ih  various  success.  Once,  by  an 
artful  man(xjuvre,  they  decoyed  the  Spanish  general  on  tlie  causeway 
so  fatal  to  him  the  year  before,  and  closing  on  his  column,  with  a 
multitude  of  canoes,  compellcil  him,  with  m  ;  .  loss,  to  retreat.  The 
caciques  fiercely  rejected  a!l  attempts  at  negotiation,  and  su'  "ingly 
asked  when  he  would  jiay  ihem  another  visit.  "They  oltc.i  pre- 
tended," lie  writes,  "to  invite  us  to  enter  the  city,  saying,  'Go  in, 
go  in,  and  enjoy  yourselves!'  and  at  another  time  they  said  to  us. 


'  I'll 


;|!^=^-:V-;-^;' |, 


152 


THE   PEOPLE'S   liOO  A    OF  HISTORY. 


'Do  you  think  t'-^^rp  Is  now  a  second  ^'^ontezuma,  to  do  every  thing 
you  wish?'"  aT'  •  lemuining  in  Tacuba  for  six  days,  enlivened  by 
continuous  skirmi..,ing,  and  many  chivalrous  personal  combats,  he 
led  back  his  forces,  considerably  annoyed  by  the  way,  to  their  quar- 
ters in  Tezcuco. 

Perceiving  that  any  attempt  against  he  capital,  strongly  fortifiei;, 
valiantly  garrisoiicfi,  and  acces»,ble  only  by  water,  must  at  present 
.be  futile,  he  busied  his  peoj)le  with  lease ;•  enterprises.  Sand«'\  al,  oik- 
of  his  bravest  and  most  skilld  captains  marched,  wilL  a  cois'dcra- 
ble  force,  against  iluaxtepec,  a  strong  iorircss  of  ilu'  enemy.  Kid 
took  it  b  ■  storm.  Here  was  a  splendid  ntihy.?,  with  ri.'\  al  gardens, 
two  lea;.'.(c'  in  circumference,  stocketi  with  every  variety  of  plinitp 
Thence  t' is  .lOtive  commai;iler  proceeded  t^'  Tacapich'iu,  a  ibrtr  53 
perched  uj.'0-.  a  huye  rock,  and  .ilmost  inaccessible.  The  garr'sou 
defended  iheai^eivca  vid.)  dissperufion,  rolling  huge  stones  on  the 
heads  of  the  as:  anant*  ■  l-ut  iho  place  ^>■!^s  iiually  taken  by  storm, 
and  all  were  init  to  the  swo<.d-  ;  o-^  .s!ro:;(Vi  below  running  discoloured 
with  blood,  for  tat  space-  o^  ...  houn  The  people  of  Chalco,  ab"ut 
this  tiii^c,  also  demented  a  h»rg«  force  of  Aztecs,  dispatched  by  Gu;ite- 
moziu,  iu  two  tliou.'^and  caTioes,  against  ♦heir  city.  Overawed,  ur 
encouraged  bv  the«e  rfuccca^t-s,  ar/d  by  the  p"obable  downfall  of  M  .• 
ico,  ni!inorcu.s  proviTioe.'*,  some  lying  on  the  Gulf,  now  disjiatclicd 
t  nibaj:sies,  with  a  tci^der  of  their  service  and  allegiance,  to  the  Span- 
ii'i  general.  But  (H^  vVztecs,  unlerrificil  at  the  circle  of  enemies 
daiK  closing  around  th"m,  still  fiercely  maintained  hostilities,  and 
even  utmh'.  three  desperate  attempts  to  burn  the  brigantines  o!i  tho 
stijcks  kf  Tezcuco. 

A  rtinfofement  of  two  hundred  Spaniards,  with  eighty  horses, 
probably  from  ITisp:uiit)la,  now  arrived  at  Vera  Cruz,  and  thenco 
tovk  iheir  wuy  to  headquarters.  Among  them  was  Julian  dc  Aide- 
rote,  •rcu-'i'irer  of  the  ciown,  and  a  Dominican  friar.  Fray  Ped!-) 
Malgarcjo  de  Urrea,  who,  in  anticipation  of  uncomfortable  coii- 
.sciences,  had  laid  ia  a  goodly  suj)ply  of  papal  indulgences.  So 
great  was  tlic-  demand  for  these  consolatory  wares,  that  the  reverend 
gentleman,  at  the  end  of  a  few  months,  returned  to  Spain  with  a 
hand-  vie  fortune. 

Con      now  determined,  during  the  interval  which  must  claj;3' 
before  the  completion  of  the  canal  and  the  building  of  the  brig-  . 
tines,  to  make  the  Cf)mpietc  circuit  of  the  lakes,  subduing  nun 
ous  hostile  cities  by  which  th''-  were  still  environed.     W"f)i  t' 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTOEY  OF  MEXICO. 


153 


hundred  and  thirty  Spaniards  and  a  force  of  natives,  on  tiie  5tli  of 
Ap  -1,  1521,  he  set  out  for  Chalco.  At  that  city  he  was  joined  by 
twenty  thousand  warriors,  dispatched  by  his  allies  of  the  neighbour- 
hood, "and  certainly  attracted,"  says  Captain  Diaz,  "by  the  hope  of 
Kuoii  and  a  voracious  appetite  for  human  flesh,  just  as  the  scald* 
cjows  and  other  birds  of  prey  follow  our  anniea  in  Italy,  in  order 
V.  r^'^d  (,u  the  dead  bodies  after  a  battle."  Proceeding  southerly,  the 
t  ..'y  slowly  forced  its  way  over  rugged  sierras,  experiencing  con- 
fiiderable  loss  in  attempting,  with  various  succe-M,  the  capture  of 
srtv(  val  mountain  fortresses,  bravely  defended  by  the  Aztecs. 

The  towns  were  mostly  deserted  at  the  approach  of  the  invaders, 
b'^  0  on  the  ninth  day,  their  advance  was  stopped  at  Cuernavaca,  a 
fitrong  and  wealthy  city,  subject  to  the  Aztec  emperor,  and,  from  its 
situation,  almost  impregnable.  A  narrow  ravine,  of  frightful  depth, 
lay  just  before  the  walls,  from  which  the  defenders  kept  up  a  shower 
of  missiles,  greatly  annoying  the  perplexed  assailants.  A  daring 
feat  relieved  the  latter  from  the  embarrassment  of  their  situation. 
Two  great  trees,  growing  on  opposite  sides  of  the  abyss  and  leaning 
together,  interlocked  their  branches  in  mid-air.  By  this  precarious 
footing,  an  active  Tlaacalan  succeeded  in  secretly  passing.  Many  of 
his  countrymen  and  thirty  of  the  Spaniards  followed  him — three 
only  being  lost  in  this  frightful  passage.  Taken  by  surprise,  the 
garrison  were  disconcerted;  and  Cortes,  having  effected  another 
approach,  poured  in  his  foices,  and  drove  them  from  the  city.  It 
was  delivered  to  plunder,  but  the  lives  of  the  inliabitants,  at  the 
intorcesoion  of  their  cacique,  were  spared.  This  place,  singularly 
favoured  by  nature,  afterwards  became  a  favourite  residence  of 
llic  victor. 

Crossing  the  mountains,  the  allies  next  fell  on  a  large  and  beauti- 
ful city  on  the  l.ike,  named  Xochimilco,  or  "the  field  of  flowers," 
from  the  fluating  gardens  with  which  it  was  environed.  An  assault, 
attempted  by  the  causeway,  Wiis  repulsed  by  the  Aztecs;  but  by 
fording  the  shallows,  despite  a  spirited  resistance,  the  invaders  entered 
the  city.  Here  a  desperate  battle  ensued,  in  which  Cortes  narrowly 
escaped  with  his  life.  Ilis  horse  fell,  and  half-stunned  by  a  blow  on 
the  head,  he  was  dragged  away  by  the  enemy,  who  manifested  an 


intcn.sc  anxiety  t 


M 


!iim  i'W  uUve  for  sacrifice.     lie  was  finally 


re;icu.<l  by  tic  .  aiour  of  the  Tl .  oahciis,  and  during  a  pause  in  the 
battle,  ascei  •  ed  the  tcocnlli  to  reconnoitre  the  scone  of  action.  The 
cau.seways  leading  frotn  the  capital  were  cr  wded  with  troops,  and 


i^'ii 


M3^*i  *'■  ~'^*:: 


164 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  IIISTOKY. 


the  lake  was  alive  with  canoes,  all  hurrying  to  the  rescue  of 
Xocliimilco, 

During  the  night,  as  usual,  no  attack  was  made,  but  in  the  morn- 
ing, the  Aztec  army,  increased  by  strong  reinforcements,  forced  its 
way,  with  great  courage,  into  the  city.  They  were,  however,  re- 
pulsed by  the  artillery,  and  pursued  by  the  Spanish  cavalry;  but 
the  latter,  in  its  turn,  overwhelmed  by  the  multitude  of  the  enemy, 
was  compelled  to  make  a  hasty  retreat.  Both  armies  soon  became 
thoroughly  engaged,  and  an  obstinate  biittle,  fought  hand  to  hand, 
was  long  maintained.  The  Spaniards  and  Tlascalans  were  finally 
triumphant,  and  pursued  the  defeated  Aztecs,  with  terrible  slaughter, 
on  the  road  to  Mexico,  The  town  afforded  much  plunder;  but  the 
triumph  was  much  alloyed  by  the  sudden  seizure  of  several  Span- 
iards, who,  taken  unawares  near  the  shore,  were  surprised  by  the 
canoes  of  the  enemy,  and  carried  off  for  sacrifice.  The  town  was 
burned,  and  the  army  set  out  for  Tacuba. 

On  the  way,  considerable  fighting  occurred.  Once,  overpowered 
by  numbers,  on  a  certain  causeway,  the  Spaniards  were  compelled 
to  retreat;  and  again,  Cortes,  with  the  cavalry,  being  decoyed  into 
an  ambush,  owed  his  safety  only  to  the  most  desperate  exertions. 
Two  of  his  favourite  attendants  were  carried  off  al;ve — a  circum- 
stance which  so  aftccted  him,  that  he  rejoined  the  army  "  very  sad 
and  weejnng."  Arrived  at  Tacuba,  he  ascended  the  tcocalli  with  his 
officers,  and  all  were  struck  with  the  magnificence  of  the  cities  lying 
around  tlie  lake,  and  the  vast  number  uf  canoes  employed  in  fishing 
or  rapidly  passing  to  and  fro.  The  grief  of  Cortes,  on  beholding 
the  scenes  of  his  former  misfortunes,  the  strength  of  the  enemy, 
and  the  pro.-pect  of  renewed  conflict  and  crime,  was  redoubled,  and 
the  emctioif  which  he  disjilayed  became  the  subject  of  u  rude  b;ill;nl. 
which,  or  a  portion  of  it,  still  survives.*  The  iViar  and  his  ofliceiti 
attempted  to  console  him,  assuring  him  that  he  was  not  Xero,  re- 
joicing in  the  conflagration  of  Home.  His  answer  curiously  betrays 
the  secret  working  of  a  mind  eomi)unctions,  perhaps,  for  past  vio- 


''              '        '         i 

*  "  En  Taniha  estd  CtrrUs, 

"In  Taoulm  was  Cortrs 

CO  su  esipKulnm  isforrado 

With  nil  his  valiant  crow. 

trifle  eslaua,  y  muy  jtvniiso 

Sad  he  htudd  and  very  nioiiriifiil, 

Iriflf,  y  (um  firan  cuidado. 

Sad,  with  nii<,'ldy  iare»  oppresl; 

la  vTia  ma  HI)  en  la  mexillo 

One  iiaiid  lifted  ti>  his  eiieek, 

y  la  ulm  in  el  cvxUulo"  tj«. 

And  the  otiier  on  iiis  breabt,"  &c 

THE  CONQUEST  AND   UISTOKY  OF  MEXICO. 


155 


lie  suiJ,  "  how  often  I  have  endeavou  xd  to  persuade  yonder  capital 
peacefully  to  submit.  It  fills  me  with  grief  when  I  think  of  the  toils 
and  dangers  my  brave  followers  have  yet  to  encounter  before  we 
can  call  it  ours.  But  the  time  is  come  when  we  must  put  our  hands 
to  the  work."  ,-;•.. 


RETFRN   TO   TEZCUCO.  —  CONSPIRACY  AGAINST    CORTES. — HIS 

EXTRAORDINARY  POLICY  AND  SELF-COMMAND.  —  LAUNCHING 

OP  THE  FLEET.  —  EXECUTION  OF  XICOTENCATL.  —  DEFEAT 

OP  A  GREAT  MEXICAN  FLOTILLA  BY  THE  FLEET. — MEXICO 

BLOCKADED.  —  CONTINUAL  ASSAULTS  ON   THE  CITY. 

—  COURAGE  AND  OBSTINACY  OF  THE  COMB.\TANTS.  ■ 


After  an  absence  of  three  weeks,  the  allied  army,  ''fatigued,  worn 
out,  and  diminished  in  numbers,"  regained  its  quarters  at  Tezcuco. 
A  conspiracy,  of  the  most  dangerous  nature,  for  the  assassination  of 
Cortes  and  his  chief  officers,  had  been  matured  during  his  absence; 
but  one  of  those  engaged  in  it,  moved  by  remorse,  on  the  day  before 
that  a])pointed  for  its  execution,  disclosed  to  him  the  whole  matter. 
Forthwith  he  privately  arrested  Villafana,  the  chief  of  the  conspin.- 
tors',  and  found  on  his  person  a  paper  containing  the  names  of  all 
concerned  in  the  plot.  The  culprit,  by  summary  trial,  was  found 
guilty,  and  after  duly  receiving  the  consolations  of  the  church,  was 
hanged  from  a  window  of  the  apartment.  Cortes,  after  glancing 
over  the  scroll,  and  indelibly  impressing  on  his  mind  the  names  of 
his  secret  enemies,  hud  destroyed  it,  and  then,  with  extraordinary 
policy  and  })resence  of  mind,  gave  out,  in  a  public  speech,  (hat  the 
accomplices  of  the  criminal  were  unknown.  lie  thus  avoided  com- 
pelling them  to  desperate  nieasnrcs  or  depriving  his  already  scanty 
force  of  their  services;  while  ho  was  enabled  to  take  precautions 
against  tlicir  enmity  by  employing  them  at  a  distance  from  his  penson. 

The  canal,  after  two  months'  Iabo\ir,  was  now  completed,  and  the 
vcs.sel.s,  amid  the  firing  of  cannon,  the  celebration  of  mass,  Te  Dcurn^ 
and  other  imposing  ceremonies,  were  launched  into  the  lake.  A  largo 
gun  was  })laced  on  bo"-  ^    '  each  vessel,  and  three  hundred  Spaniards 


156 


THE   TEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIIRToKY. 


\\  (TO  detailed  for  the  maniiigcment  of  tlio  fleet.  The  force,  in  all, 
with  late  riiinforccrncnts,  amountod  to  eighty-seven  horse,  and  more 
than  eight  hundred  foot;  and  a  vast  swarm  o(  native  allies,  exultant 
in  the  prospect  of  conquest  and  J)^an(^cr,  summoned  from  all  quarters, 
flocked  to  Tezcuco  and  Clialco.  T'n  l^-acalans  alone,  under  Xico- 
toncatl  and  Chichemecatl,  nuf^'wci  t'  ^  liiousand  men.  Half  of 
tlicse,  with  two  hundred  Sp.ii  iun)'',  .udtr  Alvarado,  were  ordnctl  to 
occupy  Tacuba,  and  comn^and  the  causeway  of  the  "Noche  Triste," 
while  Oliil,  with  an  etjual  force,  was  dispatched  to  Cojohuacan,  the 
terminus  of  nnothrr  avenue  leading  from  the  capital.  Cortes  deter- 
mined to  take  charge  if  the  fleet  in  person,  and  to  cnn-o-ience  opera- 
tions by  a  fresh  attack  on  Iztapalapan,  frotr.  luc  tniusewuy  of  ..hich 
he  had  been  reccntl}'  repulsed. 

A  singular  instance  of  tlie  fidelity  of  the  Tlascalans  presently 
occurred.  Xicd  fcatl,  between  whom  and  Cortes  there  had  never 
been  any  real  c')i\',i.dity,  prompted  by  some  private  motive,  suddenly 
left  his  commana  and  ha.steneil  to  Thuscala.  This  act  of  desertion 
was  punislied  by  his  arrest,  and  speedily  afterwards  by  his  execution 
on  the  gallows,  in  the  great  square  of  Tezcuco;  and,  singular  to 
Ptate,  tiiis  act  of  unscrupulous  violence,  committed  against  their 
bravest  and  most  patriotic  chief,  does  not  appear  to  have  alienated, 
in  any  serious  manner,  the  attachment  which  Amt  warlike  people 
had  conceived  to  the  Spanish  commander. 

The  campaign  opened  disiistrously.  Alvarado  an(l  Olid,  setting 
forth  in  com,i.v'iy,  on  the  10th  of  May  (1521),  soon  reached  Tac>jV)a, 
where  they  t'>ok  up  their  qu.iiters.  After  some  hard  Hghtinj.',  they 
succeeded  in  destroying  a  jiortion  of  tho  aqueduct  of  ChapulU'pec, 
and  cutting  oft'  the  copious  supply  of  wat^r  which  it  had  hitherto 
afforded  to  the  capital.  The  next  day  tliej  marched  boldly  on  to 
the  fatal  causeway,  the  scene  of  the  '•  N'cx^hc  Tri.stt  '  It  was  strongly 
fortified,  and  bravely  defended  r>y  a  ...altitude  f  Aztec  warriors. 
Swarms  of  canoes,  on  either  side,  poured  in  a  storm  of  missiles. 
Both  ?])aniards  and  Tlascalans  fuutrhf  long  and  obstinately,  but  were 
at  last  coinpclsd,  from  the  natu/.il  riifliculty  of  lie  place  anl  the 
valour  of  tlic  defend'  ;s,  to  retreat,  v/ith  much  lus.-  and  giief,  to  their 
qviarters  iii  i'ucuba.  Olid,  witli  his  forces,  tlie  n.  .  day,  marched, 
according  to  his  orders,  to  Cojohuacan. 

The  a&saalt  under  Corte.s,  in  person,  was  '»  5  bh  cessful,  and  the 
terrors  of  a  fleet  under  sail,  provided  witii  «rtiller^\  were  now  first 
disp]aye<l  'o  the  astonished  Aztecs.     Sandoval,  by  hard  fighting,  had 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   1I18T0KY   (        MEXICO. 


157 


taken  a  portion  of  Iztapalupttii,  and  Cortes,  su  ^  with  the  fleet  to 
assist  him,  gained  a  signal  victory  on  the  vs  ly.  Being  assailed  with 
missiles  from  a  fort  perched  on  a  steep  clifl",  ("  The  Itock  of  the  Mar- 
quess,") he  landed,  and  taking  the  position  by  storm,  put  its  defend- 
ers to  the  sword.  As  he  reombarked,  a  vast  number  of  canoes 
(four  thousand,  according  to  some  accounts)  came  over  from  Mexico 
10  give  him  battle.  From  their  multitude  and  the  brilliancy  of  the 
ii.'ilive  arms  and  plumage,  they  formed  a  spectacle  both  beautiful 
and  terrible.  Favoured,  however,  by  a  sudden  gust  of  wind,  the  brig- 
aiilines  bore  Sown  among  these  frail  craft,  and,  da.shing  them 
asunder  successively,  whelmed  their  crews  in  the  lake.  "  We  broke," 
says  the  general  in  his  dispatches,  "an  immense  number  of  canoes, 
and  destroyed  many  of  the  enemy  in  a  style  worthy  of  admiration. 
*  *  *  It  was,"  he  continues,  "the  most  gratifying  specta- 
cle, as  wcH  as  the  most  desirable  one  in  the  world." 

Those  wlio  escaped  took  refuge  in  the  cinals  of  Mexico,  and  Cor- 
tes, following  up  his  advantage,  sailed  i      iid  the  city,  every  tower 
and  terrace  of  which  was  covered  with  an  innumerable  inultitudo, 
watchinj.^  with  awe  these  new  demonstrations  of  the  power  of  the 
naughty  strangers.     Aller  firing  some  shot  among  them,  rather  for 
bravado  than*  attack,  he  sailed  to  Xoloc,  where  the  great  southern 
causRway  was  intersected  by  that  of  Cojohuacan.     The   garrison 
wlui. ..   >ccupied  this  iriportant  post  was  compelled  to  relintjuisli  it, 
and  tl     Spyniards  i   ok  up  their  quarters  there.     The  Aztecs,  h(nv- 
cver,  W..H  invincible  courage,  endeavoured  to  regain  it,  day  and 
niglit,  cs|.i    Idly  from  those  basins  wliich  the  vessels  could  not  enter, 
keeping  14  s.ch  sliowers  of  arrows  that  the  ground  of  the  camp  was 
completely  covered   vith  them.     "The  multitude,"  says  Cortes,  "was 
80  great,  that  ner      r  by  land  or  water  could  we  see  any  thing  but 
human  beings,  who  utterevl  such  dreadful  howls  and  outcries,  that  it 
seemed  as  if  the  world  would  come  to  an  end.         *         »         » 
Considering,"  ho  presently  proceeds,  with  extraordinary  coolness  and 
naivct<5,  "that  the  inhabitants  of  this  city  were  rebels,  and  that  they 
discovered  so  strong  a  determination  to  defend  themselves  or  perish, 
I  inferred  two  things;  first,  that  we  should  recover  little  or  none  of 
the  wealth  (ytrA/c/t  Uiey  had  deprived  «<;  [!]  and  .secondly,  thut  they 
had  given  us  occa.sion  and  compelled  us  utterly  to  exterminate  them." 

This  terrible  avowal  was  follow  1  up  by  the  action  best  adapted 
to  ensure  its  fulfilment.  The  third  causeway,  that  of  Tepejaoac,  on 
the  north,  hitherto  left  open,  was  now  occupied  by  a  large  force 


:-J*'U. 


m 


TIIK  TEOrLE'S   BOOK   OK  HISTOKY 


under  Samloval,  aiitl  the  oify  wns  tliiia  cnn>j)l<l>'1y  lilockiidod.  A 
ijonoral  ns-ault  was  tlion  niiuli*  from  each  of  tlicso  thrco  iippniacliofi, 
Cortos,  on  foot,  loadint^  n  heavy  colninn  over  tlio  groat  8outh(>rii 
causeway,  while  his  generals  attempted  those  allotted  to  their  ehargc. 
Neitlier  Alvarado  nor  Sandoval,  deHperatcly  opposed,  were  ahlo  to 
jicnctrate  the  eity;  hut  tiie  force  led  hy  Cortes,  assisted  hv  the  hrig- 
antines  sailing  on  either  side,  dof-pito  tlu'  valiant  defence  of  the 
Aztee«s,  carried  harrier  jvfter  barrier,  and  filled  up  brcnch  after  breach 
in  the  long  dike  which  1'  d  to  the  great  street  of  .Nrexico.  As  they 
f(ircc(l  their  way,  (iLfhfing  furiously,  up  that  splendid  aveiiu",  the  scene, 
two  years  before,  of  their  peaceful  and  triumphant  entry,  a  tempest 
of  missiles,  from  every  roof  and  terrace,  was  showereil  upon  their 
heads.  They  entered  the  houses,  and  by  destroying  the  partitions, 
slowly  forced  their  way  into  the  lieart  of  the  city.  They  were  held 
at  bay  for  two  hours  l>efore  a  strong  stone  barricade,  which,  however, 
was  linally  broken  dou  n  by  tlie  artillery,  and  at  last  gained  the  great 
S(jnare.  Here  Cortes,  with  a  number  of  his  companions,  nseended 
the  tcocalli,  and  with  liis  own  hand  tore  l>om  the  face  of  the  idol, 
again  enshrined  in  his  gory  dwelling,  a  mask  of  gold  and  jewels. 
As  he  rejoined  liis  force  below,  the  Aztecs  mad<'  an  attack  so  furious 
that  till'  whole  ulli<'d  army,  Spaniards  and  Thisealam*,  were  driven 
in  confusion  down  the  street.  Nothing  .saved  them  from  utter  defeat, 
except  the  exertioius  of  the  cavalry,  who  in  some  measure  were 
enabled  to  jirotect  tln.'ir  ntreat  to  their  (pnirters.  That  this  daring 
nn<l  obstnate  assault  should  have  met  with  so  much  success  as  it  did, 
is  ecrtaiidy  wonderhil. 

The  besieging  force  was  soon  augmented  by  fifty  thousand  Tv/.- 
eucans,  under  Ixtlilxochitl,  and,  with  the  aid  of  these  forces,  which 
he  distributed  among  the  three  camps,  Cortes  planned  a  fre.sh  gen- 
enl  assault.  Alter  a  ripctition  of  the  si-enes  already  describe(l,  he 
once  more  made  his  way  into  the  .square,  and  fired  the  palace  of 
Axayacatl,  his  former  cpiarters,  and  a  m;ignifiecnt  aviary,  called 
'•The  Hou.se  of  Birihs,"  one  of  the  finest  ornaments  of  the  city. 
"Although  it  grieved  me  much,"  he  writes,  "vet,  as  it  griev<>d  the 
encmv  more,  I  determined  to  burn  these  palaces;  whereupon  they 
manifested  great  sorrow,  as  well  as  their  allies  from  the  cities  on  the 
lake.  be':ause  none  of  thcra  had  supposed  we  should  be  able  to  |>en- 
etrafe  so  far  into  the  city.  This  filled  them  with  terrible  dismay" — 
a  di>;may  not  a  little  iucreiused,  he  adds,  when  his  allies  "displayed 
!o  the  inhabitants  of  the  eitv  the  bodies  of  their  eountrymen  cut 


THE   CONtiUKST  AND    IllSTUKY   OF   MEXICO. 


Iu9 


into  piorca,  oxclniming  nt  tlio  anmo  time  tlmt  llicy  would  hnvo  tlioin 
for  .suiipor  tliut  iiij^'lit  and  for  Ijrciikfast  the  next  day,  as  was  in  fad 
llie  case."  Tiidcu-d,  tliroiigliout  this  horrible  siege,  oaiiiiibalisrn,  both 
from  necessity  and  from  the  habits  of  the  combatants,  appears  to 
have  played  a  most  eonspieiious  j)art;  and  it  is  certain  that,  but  for 
the  sustenance  adbrded  to  the  garrison  by  their  numerous  victim?^, 
the  defence  could  never  have  been  so  long  protracted. 

Ixtlilxoehitl,  the  fierce  young  prince  of  Tezcuco,  signalized  him- 
Kclf  in  this  engagement,  fighting  by  the  .side  of  Cortes,  amid  yells 
and  reproaches  from  his  Aztec  countrymen,  and  slaying  their  gen- 
eial  with  his  own  hand.  Alvarado,  on  his  j)art,  though  his  men  had 
made  the  most  desperate!  exertions,  was  unable  to  eH'cct  an  entrance, 
and  Cortes  himself  filially  judged  it  prudent  to  retreat  to  his  camp 
The  Mexicans  hung  on  his  rear,  fighting  with  such  fury  and  reck- 
lessness of  life,  tnat  nearly  all  the  Spaniards  were  wounded  before 
ihey  could  regain  their  (piartcrs.  ^I'liis  scene  was  repeated  for  many 
ensuing  days,  Cortes  continually  assaulting  the  city  from  his  cause 
way,  and  the  ^^exieans,  though  compelled  to  give  way  before  tho 
cavalry  an<l  the  superior  arms  of  their  enemies,  always  annoying  tho 
iclreat  with  great  obstinacy.  "'I'licir  conduct,"  says  thai  general 
himscKi  "was  certainly  woilhy  of  admiration,  lor  however  great  tho 
evils  and  los.ses  to  which  they  were  exposed  in  harassing  our  march, 
they  did  not  relax  their  pursuit  till  they  saw  us  out  of  the  city." 


Liiljfiirxiiiil    lAilV. 

OEXKRAL    ASS.\Ur.T   ON   T  It  E   CITY.  —  ARTFUL    DEVICE    OF    TUB 
BESIEnEI).  —  PEPEAT  OF  THE  STAXIARDS. — THEIR  LOSSES. 
—  TERRIBLE  PARTICULARS  OF  THE  SACRIFICE  OP   PRIS- 
ONERS.—  THE  GREAT   DRUM.  —  DISCOURAGEMENT    AND 
DEFECTION  OF  THE  ALLIES. — THEIR  RETURN. — 
QR.\DUAL  DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  CITY. 

Thk  brave  Guatemozin,  though  famine  began  to  press  heavily  on 
the  multitudes  crowded  within  his  walls,  rejected  all  overtures  for 
peace  and  capitulation,  and  betit  his  sole  energies  to  the  annoyance 
of  the  enemy.     He  made  frequent  and  furious  sullies  upon  the  three 


In 


P     i 


I 


I 


h 


160 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  H18T0KY. 


camps,  especially  those  where  Cortes  did  not  command  in  person 
and  once  succeeded  in  seizing  two  of  jthe  brigantines.  A  number  uf 
the  Spaniards,  to  the  inexpressible  delight  of  his  people,  Imd  been 
taken  alive  for  sacrifice,  and  the  dread  inspired  by  this  circumstance 
induced  the  survivors  to  fight  to  the  death  rather  than  encounter  a 
similar  fate.  A  vast  s.varm  of  Indian  allies,  (a  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  in  number,  according  to  Cortes,)  attracted  by  the  hope  of 
sharing  the  plunder  of  the  Aztec  capital,  now  flocked  into  the 
Christian  camps,  and  assisted  in  rendering  the  siege  more  strict. 
They  were  also  employed,  with  good  effect,  against  the  outposts  and 
detached  strongholds  of  the  Mexican  emperor,  and  such  cities  as  yet 
remained  faithful  to  his  sway. 

On  the  three  causeways,  the  fighting  was- almost  continual,  and 
many  gallant  actions,  both  by  besiegers  and  besieged,  for  want  of 
space,  are  necessarily  omitted  in  this  account.  "For  ninety-three 
days  together,"  says  Diaz,  who  was  with  Alvarado,  "we  were  en- 
gaged in  the  siege  of  this  great  and  strong  city,  and  every  day  and 
iiiglit  we  were  engaged  witli  the  eMen;y.  Were  I  to  extend  my 
lianative  to  include  every  action  which  took  place,  it  would  bo 
almost  endless,  and  my  history  would  resemble  that  of  Amadis  and 
the  other  books  of  chivalry."  Cortes,  his  army  swelled  by  vast 
reinlbrcements,  at  last  re-^^olved  on  a  grand  attempt  to  take  tlic  city 
by  storm.  Alvarado  auu  Sandoval  were  instructed  to  use  every 
exertion  to  effect  an  entrance  by  the  causeway  of  Tacuba,  while  he 
attcii:j)te(l  that  of  the  south,  and  all  were  to  endeavour  to  gain  pos- 
sc.~>ion  of  the  great  market-place,  that  a  communication  might  be 
(.(peiicd  bt'lweon  the  opjio.vitc  camps. 

"On  tlic  following  morning,  the  army  of  Cortes  having  entered 
the  city,  moved  in  three  great  bodies  along  the  same  number  of 
parallel  avenue.s,  or  causeways,  Hanked  by  deep  canals,  all  leading 
to  tiie  market-place.  The  Mexicans  made  no  very  formidable  resist- 
ance; barricade  after  barricade  was  carried;  and  the  ditches,  except 
in  one  iatnentable  instance,  were  carefully  filled  up.  But  when  the 
desired  goal  was  nearly  gained,  all  of  a  sudden,  the  horn  of  Guate- 
laoziu  sent  forth  its  shrill  'last  from  the  summit  of  the  kuculli.  At 
the  sound,  as  if  by  magic,  swarms  of  Aztec  warriors  closed  around 
the  advancing  column.s.  The  water  was  covered  with  their  canoes, 
and  the  air  was  darkened  by  i\mr  mi.ssiles.  The  foremost  column, 
driven  back  in  confusion,  was  arrested  by  a  deep  gap,  which  they 
had  neglected  properly  to  fill  uji.     Tlunged  into  the  water  by  tlio 


I 


II 


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-,•*,...-_ 


%' 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


161 


fury  of  their  pursuers,  they  vainly  attempted  to  cross  the  fatal  breach. 
Great  numbers  were  slain  or  drowned,  and  others,  a  more  horrible 
fate,  were  carried  off  alive. 

"Cortes,  who  had  hastened  to  the  spot,  in  vain  endeavoured  to 
assist  his  unfortunate  companions.  *  At  the  moment  I  reached  this 
bridge  of  troubles,'  he  relates,  'I  discovered  some  Spaniards  and 
many  of  our  allies  flying  back  in  great  haste,  and  the  enemy  like 
dogs  in  pursuit  of  them;  and  when  I  saw  such  a  rout,  I  began  to 
cry  '  Hold !  Hold  1'  and  on  approaching  the  water,  I  beheld  it  full  of 
Spaniards  and  Indians,  in  so  dense  a  mass  that  it  seemed  as  if  there 
was  not  room  for  a  straw  to  float.  *  «  »  The  cause- 
w:.y,'  he  continues,  'was  small  and  narrow,  and  on  the  same  level 
with  the  water,  which  had  been  effected  by  these  dogs,  on  purpose 
to  annoy  us;  and  as  the  road  was  also  crowded  with  our  allies  who 
had  been  routed,  much  delay  was  thereby  occasioned,  enabling  the 
enemy  to  come  up  on  both  sides  by  water,  and  to  take  and  destroy 
as  many  as  they  pleased.' 

"Cortes  himself  barely  escaped  becoming,  in  person,  a  notable 
sacrifice  to  the  idols.  Seized  by  six  Aztec  chiefs,  he  was  dragged 
toward  a  cnnoe,  and  was  rescued  only  by  the  loss  of  several  of  his 
faithful  attendants,  who  laid  down  their  lives  in  his  defence.  Getting 
at  last  to  the  little  body  of  cavalry  on  firm  ound,  he  led  them  on 
a  fierce  charge  against  the  enemy,  and  brought  off  the  remnant  of 
his  unfortunate  companions.  All  the  divisions  retreated  from  the 
city,  and  were  fiercely  attacked  in  their  own  quarters. 

"  Alvarado  and  Sandoval,  who  had  also  penetrated  nearly  to  the 
rendezvous,  were  likewise  soon  compelled  to  retreat  before  the  furi- 
ous assault  of  the  Aztecs,  who  flung  before  them  five  bloody  heads, 
exclaiming  that  one  o''  them  was  that  of  Malinche  (Cortes),  Whilo 
retreating,  hotly  pressetV  'we  heard,'  says  Diaz,  'the  dismal  sound 
of  the  groat  drum,  f;oin  tL->  top  of  the  principal  tempij  of  the  god 
of  war,  which  overlooiied  tho  whole  city.  Its  mouriful  noise  was 
such  as  may  be  imagined  the  nii'sic  of  the  infernal  gods,  and  it  might 
be  hoard  almost  to  the  distance  of  three  leagues.  Thfy  were  then 
sacritioiiig  tlie  hearts  of  ten  of  our  companions  to  their  IJols.  Shortly 
after  tliis,  tlie  king's  horn  was  blown,  giving  notice  to  his  captains 
tiiat  they  were  tlien  to  take  their  enemies  prisoners  or  die  in  the 
attempt.  It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  fury  with  which  they  closed 
upon  us,  when  they  heard  this  signall.' 

"On  this  disastrous  day,  besides  the  loss  of  cannon  and  horses, 
Vol.  III.— 11 


il 


162 


THE  PEOI'LE'S   BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY. 


many  of  the  Spaniards  had  been  killed,  and  nearly  all  wounded. 
Worst  of  all,  sixty-two  (mostly  under  Cortes),  and  a  multitude  of 
their  Indian  allies,  had  fallen  alive  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  and 
been  carried  off  for  sacrifice.  That  very  evening,  the  dismal  roar  of 
the  great  drum  was  again  heard ;  and  the  last  rays  of  the  setting  sun 
fell  on  a  long  procession  winding  up  the  sides  of  the  huge  teocalli. 
Among  the  victims,  stripped  to  their  waists,  several  were  seen  to  be 
white  men ;  and  the  Spaniards,  with  unutterable  horror,  beheld  their 
miserable  comrades,  with  fans  in  their  hands,  and  gaudily  decked 
with  plumes,  compelled  to  dance  before  the  hideous  idol,  and  then 
stretched  upon  the  fearful  Stone  of  Sacrifice.  As  heart  after  heart 
was  plucked  out  and  laid  before  the  altar,  the  bodies  were  hurled 
down  the  steep  sides  of  the  pyramid,  and  prepared  by  the  priests 
below  for  a  grand  cannibal  festivity.  -      ■  ■   '  ->    ■      ■• 

"  Night  after  night,  these  hideous  scenes  were  repeated  in  full  view 
of  the  camp  of  Alvarado;  and  the  Spaniards,  with  sickening  hearts, 
were  compelled  to  witness  the  fearful  solemnities  of  a  fate  which  any 
day  might  be  their  own.  "During  each  night  of  this  period,"  says 
a  horrified  witness,  "t^'e  enemy  continued,  beating  their  accursed 
drum  in  the  great  temple.  Nothing  can  equal  the  dismal  impression 
its  sound  conveyed.  They  were  then  in  the  execution  of  their  infer- 
nal ceremonies;  the  whole  place  was  illuminated,  and  their  shrieks 
at  certain  intervals  pierced  the  air.  *  *  *  Lg^  ^^ 
reader  imagine  what  were  our  sensations!  'Oh,  heavenly  God,'  wo 
said  to  ovrselves,  'do  not  permit  us  to  bo  sacrificed  by  these  wretches^ 
*  *  For  ten  nights  together  were  they  thus  emj)loyod  in  put 
ting  to  death  our  unfortunate  companions.'  The  priests  eager  in 
their  horrid  ministry,  seemed,  amid  the  glare  of  sacrificial  fires,  like 
demons  flitting  about  in  their  native  element,  and  busied  with  the 
torments  of  the  condemned."* 

Exulting  in  their  victory,  the  besieged,  every  monnng,  made 
furious  a.ssault8  upon  the  aevcral  camps,  exclaiming,  with  loud  re- 
viljngs,  \jc>  the  Spaniards,  that  their  flesh  was  too  bitter  to  be  eaten — 
"and  truly,"  says  honest  Diaz,  "it  seems  that  such  a  miracle  Wiis 
wrought."  The  Mexican  priests  now  predicted  tliat  within  eight 
days  the  gods  would  deliver  the  enemy  into  their  hands.  Tcirilied 
at  tills  ominotis  aiuiouncement,  the  fulfilment  of  which  seemed  her- 
alded by  their  late  misfortunes,  a'l  the  vast  swarm  of  allies,  savj 
those  of  Tlascala  and  Tezcuco,  smitten  with  a  superstitious  panic, 

♦  Disi'OV'.'rcrs,  Six'.,  of  America. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


163 


melted  away  and  dispersed  to  their  homes.  But,  with  the  assistance 
of  these  faithful  and  powerful  coadjutors,  the  Christians  still  man- 
aged to  hold  possession  of  the  causeways,  and  their  brigantines,  com- 
manding the  lakes,  cut  off  nearly  all  supplies  from  the  beleaguered 
city.  The  appointed  period  having  passed  without  witnessing  their 
destruction,  the  allies  flocked  back;  and  the  Spanish  captains,  by  a 
short  but  successful  campaign  against  the  few  provinces  still  faitliful 
to  Guatemozin,  confined  all  hostility  or  resistance  to  the  limits  of  the 
heroic,  but  solitary  capital.  The  arrival  of  a  fresh  vessel  at  Vera 
Cruz  strengthened  the  assailants,  and  the  siege  was  vigorously  pressed. 

It  seemed,  however,  that  nothing  short  of  its  complete  destruction 
could  break  the  invincible  spirit  of  the  Aztecs;  and  accordingly,  as 
the  assailants  gained  ground,  building  after  building  was  levelled  to 
the  earth.  The  materials  were  used  to  fill  up  the  canals,  and  an 
open  desolate  space,  suited  to  the  charge  of  the  cavalry,  was  thus 
gradually  formed  within  the  limits  of  the  hitherto  almost-impene- 
trable city.  The  inhabitants,  in  despair  at  the  destruction  of  their 
homes  and  palaces,  cried  aloud  to  the  allies,  who  carried'on  the  work, 
"  Go  on !  the  more  you  destroy,  the  more  you  will  have  to  build  up 
again  hereafter.  If  we  conquer,  you  shall  build  fov  us;  if  your 
white  friends  conquer,  they  will  make  you  do  as  much  for  them." 

Guatemozin,  remembering  the  unhappy  fate  of  his  uncle,  Monte- 
zuma, still  sternly  rejected  all  overtures  for  capitulation.  "Let  no 
man  henceforth,"  he  said  to  the  chiefs,  "who  values  his  life,  talk  of 
surrender.  We  can  at  least  die  like  warriors."  Once  more,  fight- 
ing under  the  eye  of  their  emperor,  the  enfeebled  garrison,  with  des- 
perate valour,  attacked  the  hostile  camps;  but  every  dik'  was  swept 
by  artillery,  and  after  terrible  losses  they  were  driven  back  into  the 
city.  Despite  their  determined  resistance,  the  palace  of  Guatemozin 
himself  was  levelled  to  the  ground,  and  a  free  communication  was 
at  last  opened  through  the  city  with  the  opposite  camp  of  Tacuba. 


m 


fM- 


164 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOBY. 


LHAFTEH   av. 


TERRIBLE  8UFPERIN0S  AND  MORTALITY  OP  THE  BESIEGED. — 

OBSTINATE  RESISTANCE  OF  OHATEMOIIN. — COURAGE  AND 

FIDELITY  OF  HIS  PEOPLE.  —  MEXICO     AKEN  BY  STORM. 

— FEARFUL   MASSACRE, — CAPTURE   OF   OUATEMO- 

ZIN.  —  REFLECTIONS    ON    THE    CONQUEST. 


As  the  destruction  of  the  city  gradually  went  on,  the  most  fear- 
ful s(.<i>i:s  of  death,  disease,  and  starvation,  were  constantly  disclosed. 
The  canals  were  choked  and  the  narrow  streets  were  strewn  with 
corp.ses.  The  allies,  eager  to  avenge  past  injuries,  massacred  iudis- 
cnniiuuLely  all  that  fell  alive  into  their  hands.  Alvarado,  carrying 
"i  iho  same  system  of  levelling  and  destruction,  finally  penetrated 
to  .ne  great  lianguez  or  market-place,  and  took  by  storm  the  tcocalh 
which  .imandt'd  it.  Many  of  the  heads  of  the  sacrificed  Span- 
iards were  found  in  the  sanctuary,  aflixed  to  beams,  with  thtir  hair 
and  beards  umch  grown,  and  tears  came  into  the  eyes  of  those  who 
recognized  their  friends.  As  the  opposite  divisions  met  in  the  long- 
desired  rendezvous,  Cortes,  with  a  few  cavaliers,  rode  through  the 
great  square,  now  abandoned  by  tlie  warriors.  Every  roof  and  ter- 
race which  surrounded  it  was  crowded  with  the  starving  populace, 
gazing  sullenly  on  their  triumphant  enemies.  Seven-eighths  of  the 
city,  by  this  lime,  had -been  destroyed,  and  in  the  portion  yet  stand- 
ing was  crowded  a  va^t  nmltitude  of  wretches,  suflering  all  the 
agonies  of  famine,  disease,  and  despair. 

Guatemozin  still  held  out,  and  his  brave  warriors,  enfeebled  by 
hunger,  made  a  vain  attempt  to  drive  the  enemy  from  the  squarcc 
liis  position  wud  still  tolerably  strong,  and  the  Spaniards,  their  aia- 
nmnition  failing,  were  unable  to  dislodge  him  by  meiuis  of  artillery. 
In  this  emergency,  a  soldier  named  Sotelo,  who  had  served  in  the 
wars  of  Italy,  and  who  "was  eternally  boasting  of  the  wonderful 
military  machines  which  he  knew  the  art  of  constructing,"  persuaded 
Cortes  to  make  trial  of  a  sj^ecies  of  catapult  or  mangonel,  for  throw- 
ing huge  stones  or  other  missiles.  Bui  when,  after  infinite  pain.s, 
the  engine  had  been  built,  and  a  stone  as  large  as  a  bushel  had 
been  launched  into  the  air,  instead  of  flying  in  the  direction  of  the 
enemy,  it  returned  exactly  to  the  place  whence  it  started,  and,  amid 


THE   CONQUEST   AND   HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


165 


the  derision  of  the  soldiery  and  the  rage  of  the  general,  dashed  the 
machine  to  pieces. 

Famine,  however,  was  doing  its  work  for  the  besiegers  more 
swiftly  and  surely  than  their  most  formidable  engines  of  deaths. 
The  remaining  streets,  says  Cortos,  were  so  crowded  with  carcasses, 
that  no  one  could  step  in  them  without  setting  his  foot  on  a  dend 
body.  The  ernperor,  apparently  determined  to  bury  himself,  with 
the  last  relics  of  the  Aztec  name,  in  the  ruins  of  his  capital,  even 
now  sternly  refused  to  listen  td  any  proposals  of  peace,  and,  it  is  said, 
even  sacrificed  one  of  his  own  nobles  who  had  been  sent  by  Cortes 
to  demand  a  surrender.  Several  times,  indeed,  he  agreed  to  a  per- 
sonal conference  with  the  Spaniard;  but,  fearing  treachery,  held  aloof. 

His  people,  with  almost  unheard-of  fidelity,  still  rendered  their 
obedience,  though  assured  of  certain  destruction.  The  Aztec  chiefs, 
Cortes  tells  us,  as  he  rode  near  them,  would  cry  out,  "You  are  said 
to  be  the  Child  of  the  Sun,  but  the  Sun,  in  a  single  day,  completes 
his  course  over  all  the  world — why  will  not  you  as  quickly  destroy 
us,  and  relieve  our  suflFerings? — for  we  long  to  die,  and  go  to  our  god 
Orchilobus  (Iluitzilopotchtli),  who  is  waiting  to  give  us  rest  in  heaven." 
The  fate  they  invoked  was  rapidly  approaching.  On  the  12th  of 
August,  1521,  the  overwhelming  forces  under  command  of  Cortes 
were  ordered  to  storm  the  remainder  of  the  city.  The  Aztecs,  though 
without  a  shadow  of  hope,  ft)ught  as  became  the  last  relics  of  a  groat 
and  v/arlike  nation.  They  placed  their  strongest  warriors  in  the  van, 
and  wielded  their  rude  weapons  with  a  courage  that  almost  compen- 
sated for  the  feebleness  of  hunger.  Overjiowered,  however,  by 
numbers,  and  by  the  superior  strength  of  health,  they  were  slain 
and  repulsed,  and  the  allies,  in  overwhelming  numbers,  flocked  in, 
and  commenced  the  work  of  massacre.  "So  terrible  was  the  cry," 
says  Cortes,  "and  especially  of  the  women  and  children,  that  it  was 
enough  to  break  one's  heart.  *  *  *  Never  did  I  see  a  people 
of  such  cruelty,  nor  so  utterly  destitute  of  humanity  as  these  Indians." 
Before  he  could  draw  off  his  infuriated  allies,  forty  thou.'»and  of  the 
helpless  multitude,  he  tells  us,  had  perished  by  their  hands. 

The  next  day  he  renewed  his  summons  that  the  wretched  sur- 
vivors should  surrender;  but  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  city,  who 
appeared,  only  gave  the  melancholy  reply,  "Guatemozin  will  die 
where  he  is,  hut  will  hold  no  interview  with  the  Spanish  commander; 
it  is  for  you  to  work  your  pleasure.''  "  Go  then,"  said  the  Conqueror 
sternly,  "and  prepare  your  countrymen  for  death.     Their  hour  i.s 


It 

i 

m 


I 


'.M 


i 
k 


Km 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  IIISTOKY. 


TI 


i;ome."  A  fresh  and  furious  assault,  both  by  laud  and  water,  was 
accordingly  made,  and  the  wretched  Aztecs,  men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, enfeebled  by  famine  and  disease,  and  crowded  in  helpless 
masses  on  the  water's  edge,  were  massacred  in  fearful  numbers.  The 
brigantines,  scouring  the  lake,  intercepted  the  canoes  in  which  some 
endeavoured  to  escape,  and  gained  the  greatest  prize  of  the  day.  As 
they  attacked  one  of  these  frail  craft,  a  young  warrior,  armed  with 
sword  and  buckler,  stood  prepared  to  beat  off  the  assailants;  but 
when  the  Sjianish  captain  forbade  his  men  to  fire,  lowered  his  weapons, 
and  said,  with  dignity,  "I  am  Guatemozin;  lead  me  to  Malinche 
(Cortes);  I  am  his  prisoner;  but  let  no  harm  come  to  my  wife  and 
my  followers."  Elated  with  the  greatness  of  their  prize,  the  captors 
hurried  with  him  to  tlieir  general.  The  noble  prince,  with  a  calm 
and  resolute  air,  approached  closely  to  him,  and  said,  "Malinche,  I 
have  done  that  which  was  my  duty,  in  defence  of  my  kingdom  and 
my  people.  My  efforts  have  failed;  and  since  I  am  your  prisoner," 
(laying  his  hand  on  the  hilt  of  the  Spaniard's  dagger)  "draw  that, 
poniard  from  your  side,  and  strike  me  to  the  heart."  The  victor, 
admiring  his  heroic  denjeanour,  assured  him  of  kindness  and  pre- 
lection for  himself,  as  well  as  for  all  his  household. 

The  garrison,  on  learning  the  capture  of  their  emperor,  abandoned 
all  further  resistanco,  and  the  conquerors,  having  eoniinitted  u  fright- 
ful slaughter  among  them,  were  compelled,  by  the  terrible  effluvia 
from  the  corpses,  to  withilraw  from  the  city.  With  the  night  there 
came  on,  says  a  witness,  "the  greatest  tempest  of  rain,  thur.der,  and 
lightning,  especially  Jlbout  midnight,  that  ever  was  known,"  as  if 
the  very  elements  of  nature  were  convulsed  in  sympathy  with  this 
terrible  fall  of  an  ancient  dynasty  and  nation.  This  memorable  day, 
the  13lh  of  August,  1621,  chanced  to  be  that  of  St.  llypolito,  who, 
on  this  account,  was  selected  by  the  victors  us  the  guardian  saint  of 
their  new  empire. 

A  hushed  and  terrible  silence  suuueeded  the  clamorous  and  dis- 
cordant U[troar,  which,  day  and  night,  for  so  many  weeks,  had  been 
raging  around  the  devoted  city.  So  deafened  had  tiste  soldiers  become 
with  this  continued  clamour,  that  ihi  •  felt,  accordiug  to  their  account, 
like  men  who  had  long  been  coi  ined  in  a  steeple,  wiih  the  bells 
ringing  about  their  ear-s.  On  the  next  day,  the  forlorn  relics  of  th«* 
garrison  and  the  ciiizens,  variously  estimated  at  thirty  to  seventy 
thousand  in  number,  were  permitted  to  pass  out  of  the  city.  For 
three  diiys,  the  several  causeways  were  covered  euicli  with  its  file  of 


wretched,  e 

pain  and  w 

them."    Tl 

been  crowd 

the  siege  cii 

least  at  a  h 

1U4  a  quarte 

tion  of  Jer 

was  fully  e 

bers  of  the 

it  is  said,  nc 

so  terrible 

the  valour 

besieged,  a 

were  daily 

Thus  ter 

able  in  the 

valour,  by 

had  gainec 

whose  pow 

and  strong 

trated  to  tl 

pany  of  str 

of  their  a 

I'lvscott,  ii 

tlie  air  of  ] 

of  the  gen 

Conquest  i 

must  fill  I 

iiidifferentl 

of  a  power 

deliance  ot 

their  way 

out  know  I 

to  guide  t 

encounter, 

on  a  hostil 

as  it  were; 

with  the  ii 

of  the  em 


THE   CONQUEST   AND  III8T0KY   OF  MEXICO. 


167 


wretched,  emaciated  beings,  dragging  their  feeble  limbs  with  such 
pain  and  weariness  that,  says  a  witness,  "it  was  misery  to  behold 
them."  The  population  of  many  adjacent  cities  a^  1  provinces  had 
been  crowded  into  the  capital,  and  the  number  v.  uioh  perished  during 
the  siege  can  never  be  accurately  k*^  -vn.  It  has  been  estimated  at 
loust  at  a  hundred  and  twenty  thou^.  r  d,  and  by  some  nearly  as  high 
ius  a  quarter  of  a  million.  Diaz  says  that  he  had  read  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem,  and  thinks  that  the  mortality  in  that  ill-fated  city 
waH  fully  equalled  by  that  which  occurred  in  Mexico.  Great  num- 
bers of  the  allies  had  also  perished  during  the  siege — among  them, 
it  la  said,  no  less  than  thirty  thousand  of  the  Tezcucans.  A  mortality 
so  terrible  during  a  siege  of  only  three  months,  sufficiently  indicates 
the  valour  and  ruthlessness  of  the  besiegers,  the  constancy  of  the 
besieged,  and  the  sanguinary  nature  of  the  combats  in  which  they 
were  daily  engaged. 

Thus  terminated  a  series  of  events,  undoubtedly  the  most  remark- 
able in  the  whole  range  of  American  history.     A  nation  which  by 
valour,  by  natural  genius,  and  by  the  far-sighted  policy  of  its  rulers, 
had  gained  complete  ascendancy  over  all  surrounding  provinces, 
whose  power  had  become,  in  great  measure,  consolidated  by  time 
and  strong  in  hereditary  affection,  in  less  than  two  years  was  proa- 
tratetl  to  the  earth,  enslaved,  and  half-extermmated  by  a  little  con- 
piiny  of  strangers,  so  small  in  number  as  almost  to  render  the  belief 
of  their  acliievement  impossible.     "The  whole  story,"  says    Mr. 
I'lvscott,  in  his  brief  and  eloquent  summary  of  these  events,  "has 
the  air  of  fable  rather  than  of  history!  a  legesd  of  romance,  a  tale 
of  the  genii!     Whatever,"  he  continues,  "may  be  ♦hought  of  the 
Conquest  in  a  moral  view,  regarded  as  a  military  p-iiievement,  it 
must  fill  us  with   astonishment.     That  a  handful  of  i.Jventurers, 
indilferently  armed  and  equipped,  should  have  landed  on  the  shores 
of  a  powerful  «!inpire,  inhabited  by  a  fierce  and  warlike  race,  and  in 
defiance  of  the  reiterated  prohibitions  of  its  sovereign,  have  forced 
their  way  into  the  interior; — that  they  should  have  done  this,  with- 
out knowledge  of  the  language  of  the  land,  without  chart  or  compass 
to  guide  them,  without  any  idea  of  the  difficultiej^  they  were  to 
encounter,  t«.>Uilly  uncertain  whether  tho  next  step  might  bring  them 
on  a  hostile  nation  or  on  a  desert,  feeling  their  way  along  in  the  dark, 
as  it  were; — that,  though  nearly  overwhelmed  by  their  first  encounter 
with  the  inhabitatit<s  they  should  have  still  pressed  on  Uj  the  capital 
of  the  empire,  and,  having  reatihed  it,  thrown  themsel/es  unhesi- 


L» 


r  '^1 


108 


THE  PEOl'LK'S    HOOK    Ol'    llUiOKV. 


tatiiigly  into  the  iniJst  of  their  onomios;  tliat  so  far  from  beirij^ 
liiumtfcil  by  the  cxtraordina'-v  (M.-tacle  there  exhibited  of  power 
and  civilization,  thoy  should  have  been  but  more  confirmed  in  the! 
original  design; — that  they  should  have  Beizcd  the  monarch,  ha,e 
executed  his  ministers  before  the  eyes  of  his  subjects,  and  when 
driven  forth  with  ruin  from  the  gates,  have  gathered  their  scattered 
wreck  together,  and,  after  a  system  of  operations,  pursued  with  con- 
summate poliiy  and  daring,  have  succeeded  in  overturning  the  cap- 
ital, and  establishing  their  sway  over  the  country; — that  all  this 
should  have  been  so  effected  by  a  mere  handful  of  indigent  adven- 
turers, is  a  fact  little  short  of  the  miraculous — too  startling  for  the 
probabilities  demanded  by  fiction,  and  without  a  parallel  in  the  pages 
of  history." 


li  U.  II  r   I  L  Ii    AVI. 

THE  TORTURE  OP  OUATEMOZIN.  —  SETTLEMENT   OF   THE   COUN- 
TllY.  —  PRE8H    ENTERPRISES.  —  OFFICES   AND    TITLES   CON- 
FERRED ON  CORTES.  -  ills  OSTENTATION.  —  HIS  SAGACIOUS 
POLICY. — GREAT   i:.\TK?fSION  OP  THE  SPANISH  TERRI- 
TORY.—  THE   n  ,    f.lT   OF   OLID.  —  TERRIBLE    MARCH 
TO  HONDURAS. liIE  MURDER  OP  GUATEMOZIN. 


I 


Success  so  wonderful  might  well  seem  to  excuse  a  commensurate 
exultation.  The  victors,  their  sanguinary  trium{)h  completed,  sat 
down  to  a  fciust,  enlivened  by  the  generous  wine  of  Spain,  their  long 
ab.stincnce  from  which,  while  it  gave  a  double  zest  to  the  genial 
<lrau^'lit,  heightened  ita  exhilerating  effect.  The  revelry  at  last 
waxed  hj  frantic,  that  Father  Olmedo,  scamlalized  at  the  .scene,  inter- 
fered, and  a  solemn  religious  ceremonial,  by  his  direction,  was  per- 
formed as  the  fitter  celebration  of  the  triumph  of  the  faith. 

A  most  di.sgraceful  scene  was  presently  enacted.  Disappointed  by 
the  smalliiess  of  the  booty  (for  the  garrison,  aa  a  last  revenge,  had 
sunk  or  destroyed  their  treasures)  the  rapacious  soldiery  demanded 
that  Guatcinozin  .should  be  tortured  to  effect  a  discovery.  Cortes, 
fearing  to  irritate  them  by  refusal,  and  perhaps  sharing  in  their 
rapacious  cruelty,  to  his  eternal  dishonour,  complied.     But  the  young 


THE   00NQUK8T  AND  HISTORY    OF   MEXICO. 


169 


-a  grc     f^olden 
onij  fruit 

e  t  ^  iowl- 
rruunding 
:c  success 


emperor  withstood  their  diabolical  devices  with  the  same  courage 
and  firmness  which  he  had  displayed  in  the  defence  of  his  "ity.  Tlie 
cliief  of  Tacuba,  his  relative,  who  was  tortured  at  tlio  s<ui\e  time, 
groaned  aloud;  but  the  monarch  rebuked  this  exprc,--i  n  of  feebk' 
iiess  by  the  significant  remark,  "Do  you  tliink,  then,  thui  I  am  taking 
my  pleasure  in  the  bath?"  Nothing  was  extorted  froi  thorn  beyond 
the  avowal  that  the  treasures  had  b(M'n  sunk  in  th.  lak*  ,  but  nearly 
all  attempts  to  find  the  lost  valuables  provcu  f'  'it)' 
sun,  discovered  in  a  pond  in  the  palace,  bc'ii  :  al  . 
of  the  search. 

The  supremacy  of  the  Spaniards  had  been  fr 
edged  with  alacrity  by  numerous  tribes  and  pi 
the  old  imperial  domain;  and  the  tidings  of  this 
overawed  opposition  in  nearly  all  the  remaining  regions  of  tho 
former  Aztec  empire,  and  led  their  inhabitants  to  seek  safety  in 
immediate  submission  to  the  victors.  In  the  district  of  Panuco, 
indeed,  a  formidable  opposition  was  encountered,  but  was  suppressed 
witli  great  ferocity  and  cruelty  by  a  force  under  Sandoval,  no  less 
than  four  hundred  caciques  being  executed  on  the  stake  or  the  gal- 
lows— "by  which  means,  God  be  praised,"  says  Cortes,  piously,  in 
his  report,  "the  province  was  restored  to  tranquillity."  Almost 
immediately  after  his  triumph,  he  dispatched  exploring  parties  who 
made  their  way  to  the  waters  of  the  Pacific,  and  projected  fresh 
schemes  of  extensive  conquest  among  its  shores  and  islands. 

'J'he  ancient  empire  of  Anahuac  fhus  subverted,  and  its  very  name 
changed  by  the  victor  to  New  Spain,  the  natives,  as  a  matter  of 
f'jursc,  were  speedily  reduced  to  a  state  of  vassalage — the  Tlascalans 
alone,  on  account  of  their  early  alliance  and  constant  fidelity,  (as 
well,  perhaps,  as  their  warlike  and  stubborn  character,)  being  ex- 
empted. Fulfilling  the  despairing  prediction  of  the  vanquished 
Aztecs,  Cortes  at  once  employed  a  vast  number  of  his  serfs  in  re- 
building, on  a  magnificent  European  plan,  the  ruined  capital  of 
Mexico.  Within  four  years,  another  great  city,  with  palaces,  cathe- 
drals, and  fortresses,  was  reared  upon  the  very  site  of  the  vanished 
metropolis  so  terribly  and  ruthlessly  destroyed. 

It  is  an  extraordinary  fact,  that  the  Conqueror,  from  his  first 
embarkation  to  the  final  achievement  of  his  gigantic  task,  had  not 
received  from  the  Spanish  court  the  slightest  intimation  of  its  favour 
or  disapproval.  This  may  be  partly  accounted  for  by  the  rarity 
of  communication;  but,  considering  the  magnitude  of  the  prize  at 


m 


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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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ffiotographic 

Sdences 
Corporation 


33  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  UStO 

(716)  •73-4S03 


^v 


^■^^ 


^ 


170 


^^>f    THE  PEOPLE'S  B/)OK  OF  HIStOBT.      Ht 


3take,  the  course  of  the  government  seems  to  have  been  unusually 
dilatory  and  indecisive.  Fonseca,  who  still  held  the  control  of 
Indian  affiiirs,  had  indeed,  at  the  instigation  of  Velasquez,  appointed 
a  commissioner,  with  authority  to  examine  the  affairs  of  the  province, 
and  even  to  seize  the  person  and  property  of  the  general ;  but  that 
officer,  arriving  not  long  after  the  conquest,  was  induced,  partly  by 
force  and  partly  by  bribery,  to  rid  the  country  of  his  presence.  On 
the  return  of  Charles  V.,  in  July,  1522,  to  his  Spanish  dominions; 
his  ears  were  immediately  filled  with  clamorous  accusation  and  fierce 
vindication  of  the  conduct  of  Cortes.  He  referred  the  whole  affair 
to  a  High  Commission,  which,  after  an  impartial  investigation, 
impressed  with  the  extraordinary  achievements  of  the  Conqueror, 
decided  nearly  every  thing  in  his  favour.  In  October  of  the  same 
year,  he  was  appointed  governor,  captain-general,  and  judge  of  all 
New  Spain,  almost  the  entire  authority,  both  military  and  civil, 
being  centred  in  his  single  person.  His  favourite  officers  were  pro- 
portionably  rewarded,  and  the  common  soldiers  received  an  abund- 
ance of  flattering  promises.  Both  Fonseca  and  Velasquez  died  shortly 
after  this  signal  discomfiture — it  is  said,  of  chagrin  and  mortification 
at  the  triumph  of  their  adversary. 

_;  The  vifctor,  even  before  the  receipt  of  these  welcome  tidings,  took 
the  most  prompt  and  energetic  measures  for  the  settlement  and 
extension  of  his  realms.  Numerous  adventurers,  attracted  by  his 
liberal  offers,  flocked  to  the  shores  of  Mexico,  and  Spanish  colonies 
were  planted  in  all  directions,  even  as  far  as  California.  To  increase 
the  population,  all  married  men  were  obliged  to  bring  their  wives, 
and  all  bachelors,  under  stringent  liabilities,  to  marry — a  sumptuary 
measure,  professedly  for  the  good  of  their  souls,  and  to  which  the 
legislator  himself,  with  some  clfllgrin,  was  compelled  to  conform,  by  the 
unexpected  arrival  of  his  own  wife,  Donna  Catalina,  from  Cuba.  She 
did  not  long  survive  her  arrival.  Elated  with  triumph,  the  governor, 
immediately  on  receiving  his  commissions,  assumed  an  almost  regal 
state  and  dignity.  Every  where  he  went,  attended  by  an  immense 
retinue,  fit  for  a  king,  with  conquered  caciques  riding  in  his  train, 
and  all  the  populace,  as  in  the  days  of  their  ancient  sovereigns,  cast 
themselves  on  their  faces  by  the  roadside  as  he  passed. 

Abounding  in  natural  wealth,  and  stocked  with  a  vast  multitude 
of  submissive  laborers,  the  great  colony  of  New  Spain  speedily 
became  the  most  valuable  possession  of  the  Spanish  crown.  Withir. 
three  years  from  the  destruction  of  the  capital,  a  vaat  extent  of 


THE   CaNQUEST  AND  HISTORY    OF  MEXICO. 


171 


country,  measuring,  according  to  Cortes,  four  hundred  leagues  on 
tijc  Pacific  coast,  and  five  hundred  on  that  of  the  Atlantic,  had  been 
brought  under  the  sway  of  the  Spaniards,  and  the  native  inhabitants 
settled  in  obedience  to  their  conquerors.  These  people,  singular  to 
state,  (considering  the  reluctance  of.  mankind  to  abandon  religious 
horrors,)  received  Christianity  with  remarkable  readiness.  The 
Franciscan  friars,  of  whom  the  first  deputation  arrived  in  1524, 
boasted  that,  in  less  than  twenty  years,  nine  millions  of  Indians  (a 
great  exaggeration)  had  been  gathered  within  the  pale  of  the  church. 

The  governor,  his 'ambition  unquenched  by  a  success  the  most 
brilliant  of  his  age,  continually  agitated  fresh  enterprises.  An  expe- 
dition which  he  fitted  out,  under  the  ferocious  Alvarado,  at  an 
immense  expense  of  human  life  and  suffering,  brought  under  his  sway 
the  wealthy  regions  of  Guatemala.  He  dispatched  'another,  under 
Olid,  to  Honduras,  and  made  vain  attempts  to  discover  the  long-con- 
jectured strait  which  should  unite  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific.  The 
latter  officer,  of  a  haughty  and  seditious  nature,  af\«r  establishing  a 
colony  on  the  shore  of  the  new  province,  openly  disowned  the 
authority  of  the  governor,  aijd  set  up  a  small  principality  of  his  own. 
When  Cortes  heard  of  this  daring  defection,  the  veins  of  his  throat 
and  nostrils,  according  to  his  wont,  swelled  and  dilated  with  rage. 
He  at  once  undertook  the  hazardous  and  precarious  enterprise  of 
marching  to  Honduras  through  the  vast  wilderness  which  intervened. 

It  was  in  October,  1524,  that,  with  only  a  hundred  cavalry  and 
three  or  four  thousand  Indians,  he  set  forth  on  this  terrible  adventure, 
the  toils  and  perils  of  which  were  too  numerous  to  be  recorded  in 
these  pages.  For  many  months,  enduring  every  extremity  of  fam- 
ine, exposure,  and  fatigue,  he  struggled  through  almost  interminable 
marshes,  toiled  over  flinty  mountains,  and  bridged  innumcrahlg 
rivers.  His  mind,  distracted  by  weariness  and  obstacles,  av,  last 
became  moody  and  irritable,  and  by  a  fresh  crime  he  imprinted  a 
new  and  indelible  stain  on  his  memory.  The  unfortunate  Guatemo- 
zin,  whom,  dreading  his  influence  with  the  natives,  he  always  carried 
with  him,  was  accused,  on  the  most  false  and  frivolous  grounds,  of 
a  projected  conspiracy ;  and  Cortes,  anxious,  no  doubt,  to  be  rid  of 
an  object  of  perpetual  jealousy,  afler  the  mere  pretence  of  an  inves- 
tigation, ordered  his  execution.  The  prince,  with  the  calmness  of 
courage  and  innocence,  said,  "Malinche!  here  your  false  words  and 
promises  have  ended — in  my  death.  I  should  have  fallen  by  my  own 
band,  in  my  city  of  Mexico,  rather  than  have  trusted  myself  to  you. 


I 


172 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


Why  do  you  unjustly  take  my  life?  May  God  demand  of  you  this 
innocent  blood!'!  He  was  hanged,  with  the  cacique  of  Tacuba,  and 
other  chiefs,  upon  a  huge  Ceiba-tree.  They  died,  we  are  told,  "like 
good  Christians,  and,  for  Indians,  most  piously;"  and  among  even 
the  rough  spirits  by  whom  Cortes  was  surrounded,  there  was  but 
one  opinion,  that  the  sentence  was  unjust  and  cruel  in  the  extreme. 


n^?"v; 


ARRIVAL   AT  HONDURAS. — rSURPATION    IN    MEXICO. — 0B8B 

QUIES  AND  MASSES  PERFORMED  FOR  CORTES. — HIS  RETURN. 

— SUSPICION  OF  THE  COURT. — CORTES  SAILS  TO  SPAIN. — 

HONOURS  BESTOWED  ON  HIM. — RETURNS  TO  MEXICO. — 

EXPENSIVE  EXPEDITIONS. — CORTES  AGAIN  RETURNS 

TO  SPAIN.  —  UNSUCCESSFUL  AT  COURT. — HIS  DEATH. 

-         — HIS  CHARACTER. — PATE  OF  THE  CONQUERORS. 

After  enduring  extreme  suffering,  the  relics  of  the  Spanish  force 
finally  arrived  at  Honduras,  where  Cortes  learned  that  his  authority 
had  already  been  restored  by  a  counter-revolution,  planned  by  his 
friends,  and  that  Olid  was  already  beheadec.  With  his  accust'"~»ed 
energy,  he  immediately  busied  himself  in  fresh  exploration,  b  -.s 
arrested  in  the  midst  of  extensive  schemes  of  discovery  and  conqoest 
by  the  tidings  that  his  deputies  in  Mexico  had  usurped  the  govern- 
ment. Catching  at  a  vague  rumour,  that,  with  his  army,  he  had 
perished  in  the  swamps  of  Chiapas,  they  had  seized  all  his  property, 
with  a  part  of  which  they  propitiated  the  church  by  the  purchase 
of  eternal  masses  for  his  soul.  Further  to  colour  the  report,  the  fac- 
tor, with  great  ceremony,  erected  a  monument  to  his  memory,  "and 
then,"  says  Diaz,  "proclaimed  himself  governor  and  captain -general 
of  New  Spain,  with  the  sound  of  Kettle-drums  and  trumpets,  and 
issued  out  an  order  that  all  women  who  had  any  regard  for  their 
souls,  and  whose  husbands  had  gone  with  Cortes,  should  consider 
them  dead  in  law,  and  marry  again  forthwith."  On  learning  of 
these  high-handed  proceedings,  the  governor  at  once  embarked  for 
Mexico.  •  He  encountered  severe  tempests  in  the  Gulf,  and  was  twice 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   HISTORY  OF  MEXICO 


173 


driven  back,  and  it  was  not  until  after  an  absence  of  nearly  two 
years,  that  in  June,  1526,  he  reentered  the  capital.  His  fortune  had 
been  greatly  injured  by  the  rapacity  of  these  interlopers;  but  he 
spared  their  lives,  and  resumed,  without  the  shadow  of  opposition, 
the  government  they  had  usurped.        .,]■  ;, )  o.;*;^..^,  '.m^Jif4  :)^  . 

Meanwhile,  however,  as  usual  in  similar  cases,  the  slanders  of 
his  enemies  at  court  had  proved  sufficient  to  undermine  his  interests ; 
and  a  report  being  raised  that  he  was  intending  a  revolt,  a  commis- 
sioner was  dispatched  from  Spain,  to  inquire  into  the  affairs  of  the 
province.  This  functionary  died  soon  after  his  arrival,  and  so  did 
another,  who  had  been  appointed  to  succeed  him ;  but  their  end  is 
to  be  attributed  to  the  insalubrity  of  the  climate,  and  not,  as  the 
enemies  of  Cortes  insinuated,  to  any  underhanded  treachery  of  his. 
The  person  next  appointed  gave  Iiim  such  annoyance,  that  he  re- 
solved  to  appear  before  the  court,  and,  by  his  personal  influence,  to 
sustain  bis  waning  interests.  With  a  great  treasure  in  gold  and 
jewels,  and  many  natural  curiosities  of  the  country,  in  May,  1528, 
he  arrived  at  the  little  sea-port  of  Palos,  the  same  which,  thirty-six 
years  before,  bad  witnessed  the  memorable  departure  of  Columbus. 
Here,  at  the  convent  of  La  Rabida,  the  ancient  home  of  that  great 
discoverer,  he  fcH  in  with  Francisco  Pizarro,  then  engaged  in  pro- 
viding means  for  the  Conquest  of  Peru,  and  whose  plans,  it  is  said, 
he  furthered  by  liberal  advance".  At  this  place  died  Sandoval,  the 
most  faithful,  brilliant,  and  talented  of  that  remarkable  band  of 
officers  by  whom  his  achievements  had  been  promoted. 

The  journey  of  Cortes  to  the  court  at  Toledo  was  a  continued 
triumph,  and  the  most  honourable  and  distinguished  reception  was 
accorded  to  him.  He  was  created  "  Marquis  of  Oaxarca,"  with  an 
immense  grant  of  land,  and  twenty  thousand  Mexican  serfs,  in  that 
beautiful  province,  and  soon  after  married  into  one  of  the  noblest 
families  of  Spain.  Despite  these  marks  of  favour,  the  imperial  jeal- 
ousy, stimulated  by  the  slanders  of  his  enemies,  proved  too  strong 
to  allow  of  full  justice  to  his  deserts.  His  office  of  captain-general 
he  was  allowed  to  retain,  but  that  of  governor  was  resumed  by  the 
crown,  lest  such  an  accumulation  of  dignities  should  render  him  too 
powerful  for  a  subject.  He  was,  indeed,  empowered  to  make  fresh 
conquests  and  discoveries  in  the  west  and  in  the  Pacific,  and,  with 
a  mind  inspired  with  the  hope  of  fresh  achievements,  in  the  spring 
of  1530,  he  took  his  departure  for  Mexico. 

On  his  arrival,  he  was  received  in  the  capital  with  great  enthusiasm 


174 


THK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HI8T0BT.  > '« 


by  his  late  subjects,  botb  Spanish  and  Indian;  but  he  soon  retired 
to  his  city  of  Cuernavaca,  and  there  busied  himself  with  improving 
the  country,  and  fitting  out  expeditions  of  discovery.  By  one  of 
these  the  peninsula  of  California  was  discovered,  and  Cortes  himself, 
in  an  arduous  voyage  on  the  coast  of  that  region,  underwent  the 
greatest  dangers  and  hardships.  These  and  other  expeditions,  highly 
conducive  to  geographical  knowledge,  but  unremunerative  in  a 
pecuniary  view,  cost  him  a  great  part  of  his  fortune,  none  of  which 
was  ever  made  good  to  him  by  the  government  To  obtain  compen- 
sation and  to  support  his  rights,  in  1540,  he  once  more  betook  him- 
self to  the  Spanish  court  He  was  received  with  empty  honours,  but 
prospered  little  in  his  suit,  and  the  following  year,  to  his  great  per- 
sonal loss  and  misfortune,  was  engaged  in  the  disastrous  expedition 
against  Algiers,  undertaken  by  Charles  V.  Several  years  longer  he 
haunted  the  court,  vainly  seeking  the  satisfaction  of  his  claims  and 
the  acknowledgment  of  his  services.  He  besought  the  emperor  to 
order  his  council  to  come  to  some  decision,  seeing  that  (in  the  wordi» 
of  his  memorial)  "he  was  too  old  to  wander  about  like  a  vagrant, 
but  ought  rather,  during  the  brief  remainder  of  his  life,  to  stay  at 
home  and  settle  his  account  with  Heaven,  occupied  with  the  concerns 
of  his  soul,  rather  than  with  his  substance."  Meeting  little  encour- 
agement, he  prepared  to  return  to  his  estate  in  Mexico;  but,  on>  the 
way,  was  seized  with  a  mortal  illness  at  Seville,  where,  having  re- 
ceived the  comforts  of  the  church,  he  expired,  with  much  tranquil- 
lity, on  the  2d  of  December,  1647.  He  was  in  his  sixty-third  year. 
His  remains  were  transported  to  the  city  of  Mexico,  where  they  long 
reposed  in  the  vault  of  a  certain  chapel ;  but  in  1823,  it  was  found 
necessary  secretly  to  remove  them,  for  security  against  the  fury  of 
the  revolutionists. 

Thus  died,  as  usual,  amid  neglect  and  ingratitude,  another  illus- 
trious servant  of  the  Spanish  crown.  Whatever  were  his  faults,  the 
Conqueror  of  Mexico  had  been  only  too  faithful  to  the  selfish  and 
unfeeling  monarch,  who,  like  his  predecessor,  looked  with  jealous 
distrust  on  any  man  who  had  dared  "to  deserve  too  much."  Not 
only  by  feats  of  unprecedented  daring,  Etrntegy  and  perseverance, 
had  he  overcome  numerous  and  hostile  nations,  and  brought  them 
in  subjection  to  the  imperial  sway,  but  by  his  extraordinary  policy 
and  talents  for  government  he  had  united  both  victors  and  vanquished 
in  one  powerful  state,  submissive  to  its  rulers,  and  yielding  splendid 
revenues  both  to  the  nation  and  the  crown.   His  character,  continunlly 


I'll 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTOBYOF  MEXICO. 


176 


exliibiting  antitheses  the  strangest  and  most  difficult  to  reconcile,  is 
strikingly  presented  by  the  Historian  of  the  two  great  American 
Conquests.  "He  was  avaricious,  yet  liberal;  bold  to  desperation, 
yet  cautious  and  calculating  in  his  plans;  magnanimous,  yet  very 
cunning;  courteous  and  affable  in  his  deportment,  yet  inexorably 
stern;  lax  in  his  notions  of  morality,  yet  (not  uncommon)  a  sad  bigot. 
The  great  feature  in  his  character  was  constancy  of  purpose;  a  con- 
stancy not  to  be  daunted  by  danger,  nor  baffled  by  disappointment, 
nor  wearied  out  by  impediments  or  delays." 

Of  his  companions  in  the  Conquest,  the  officers  mostly  found  either 
a  speedy  death  or  a  brilliant  elevation.  While  some,  like  Sandoval, 
Olid,  and  De  Leon,  perbhed  from  violence  or  disease,  others,  like 
Alvarado,  secured  wealth  and  dominion  over  private  principalities. 
By  far  the  greater  portion  of  the  soldiers  i^  the  original  armament 
met  with  ui^imely  deaths,  in  war,  or  on  the  Stone  of  Sacrifice,  or  in 
private  brawl,  or  by  the  hand  of  justice  for  acts  of  violence,  which 
they  continued  to  commit  afler  the  peaceful  settlement  of  the  coun- 
try. "Concerning  their  tombs  and  monuments,"  dolefully  concludes 
the  aged  Diaz,  (when  he  wrote,  one  of  the  five  survivors  of  the 
whole  armament,)  "  I  tell  you  that  their  tombs  were  the  maws  of 
cannibal  Indians,  who  devoured  their  limbs,  and  of  tygers,  serpents, 
and  birds  of  prey,  which  feasted  on  their  mangled  bodies.  Such 
were  their  sepulchres,  and  such  their  monuments!  But  to  me,  it 
appears,  that  the  names  of  those  ought  to  be  written  in  letters  of 
gold,  who  died  so  cruel  a  death,  for  the  service  of  God  and  his 
Majesty,  to  give  light  to  those  who  sat  in  darkness,  and  to  procure 
wealOi,  which  all  men  desired  It  would  be  hard  to  depict  more 
accurately,  than  by  the  unconscious  naivete  of  this  expression,  that 
extraordinary  mixture  of  religious  crusading  fanaticism  and  of  tem- 
poral greed,  which,  of  all  men,  distinguished  the  early  conquerors 
of  Mexico,  and  which  prompted  and  sustained  them  through  such 
marvellous  adventures.       , 


176 

0       THX  F£01'L£'S  BOOK  OF  UISTUKY.       ..    ' 

vti;it_;j.'iilj  ,^S^sjrw'i;:*fR-'**''i^viiii^  . 

;•          > 

CHAPTER  I?in. 

CONDITION  OF  THE  INDIANS,  AND  Of  THB  SPANISH  COLONISTS 
— NATIONAL  PRIDB. — SYSTEM  OP  OOYESNMENT. — DEPREDA- 
TIONS OF  THE  BUOANIERS. — PUBLIC  WORXS  FOR  THE  PRO- 
TECTION OF  THB  CAPITAL. — INDIAN  REVOLTS. — VERA 
0R1TZ  SEIZED  BT  AORAHONT. — JESUITS  EXPELLED. 


•K 


Hj 


The  condition  of  Mexico  under  the  sway  of  the  Spanish  viceroys 
waa  hopeless  in  the  extreme.  The  aboriginal  population,  subjected 
to  every  oppression  by  the  cruel  and  avaricious  masters  of  the  soil, 
diminished  in  number  year  by  year,  and  gradually  lost  nearly  every 
trace  of  the  spirit  and  energy  which  characterized  the  subjects  of 
the  Montezumas.  Their  attempts  to  shake  off  the  servitude  imposed 
upon  them  by  the  Spaniards  were  promptly  crushed,  and,  in  most 
instances,  were  followed  by  bloody  massacres  and  aggravated  im- 
positions. .  iivis-ial.r'  ;.;s4:rtA^.cjfi,    ./.J 

The  established  European  inhabitants,  and  the  mixed  race  sprung 
from  their  union  with  the  native  women,  were  constantly  compelled 
to  feel  their  entire  subservience  to  the  monarch  of  the  parent-coun- 
try. Foreign  viceroys  and  minor  officials  held  the  supreme  control 
over  all  public  affairs,  and  hordes  of  bigoted  priests  lent  their  pow- 
erful influence  to  keep  the  superstitious  minds  of  the  inhabitants 
from  independent  thoughts  and  plans.  Apathy  and  a  total  want  of 
enterprise  thus  became  characteristic  of  the  nation,  and  still  appear 
in  the  weakness  and  uncertainty  of  its  government,  and  its  steady 
decline  in  prosperity  and  political  importance.  The  extent  and 
severity  of  the  restrictions  imposed  by  royal  decrees,  upon  education, 
commerce,  agriculture,  and  manufactures,  in  the  province  of  Mexico, 
almost  exceed  belief.  Whatever  industrial  enterprise  appeared  likely 
to  interfere  with  the  monopolies  of  the  Spanish  producers  in  the  old 
world  was  promptly  interdicted.  Every  thing  which  Spain  could 
furnish  must  be  imported,  in  order  to  insure  a  diligent  working  of 
the  mines,  and  a  steady  supply  of  gold  and  silver  in  exchange  for 
European  commodities.  ^ 

In  the  midst  of  these  oppressions  and  exactions,  pride  and  super- 
stition still  combined  to  impress  all  classes,  of  Spanish  descent,  with 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


17  V 


a  reverence  for  the  parent-country,  which  took  the  place  of  a  natural 
patriotic  love  of  their  own  birth-place.  "The  only  object,"  says  a 
writer  in  the  Quarterly  Review^  "to  which  they  looked  up  with 
respect,  was  Spain  and  its  monarch.  The  only  subject  of  pride 
which  they  dwelt  upon  with  complacency  was  that  they  were 
Spaniards.  They  believed  (for  it  had  been  artfully  and  sedulously 
impressed  on  their  minds)  that  the  king  of  Spain  was  the  chief 
monarch  of  the  universe,  in  whose  dominions  the  sun  never  set, 
and  that  France,  Italy,  and  the  other  countries  of  Europe,  were 
tributaries  to  the  nation  of  which  they  formed  a  part.  The  lowest 
of  the  Creoles,  if  but  a  tenth-part  of  the  blood  that  circulated  in 
their  veins  was  of  Spanish  origin,  would  exclaim,  Samoa  Espanioles^ 
with  a  tone  and  emphasis  that  bespoke  a  sense  of  the  -dignity  which 
they  imagined  to  be  derived  from  that  nation." 

The  supreme  authority  of  government  was  vested  in  a  viceroy, 
almost  universally  sent  out  from  old  Spain,  whose  acts  were  more 
or  less  under  the  supervision  of  the  Council  of  Audience.  The 
members  of  this  body  were  also  Spaniards,  and  in  all  matters  they 
appear  to  have  acted  solely  for  the  advantage  of  the  patrons  to 
whom  they  owed  their  offices,  regardless  of  the  welfare  of  the 
unfortunate  country  over  which  they  were  established.  The  utmost 
venality  and  corruption  prevailed  in  the  procurement  and  retention 
of  every  valuable  oflfice  in  the  gift  of  the  crown. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  viceroyalty,  some  efforts  were  made  to 
relieve  the  miserable  aborigines  from  the  intolerable  oppression  and 
cruelties  under  which  they  were  wasting  away;  but  the  powerful 
influence  of  the  landed  proprietors,  whose  wealth  consisted  chiefly 
in  their  slaves,  rendered  the  provisions  for  this  purpose  nea'' 
nugatory.  Being  themselves  subjected  to  the  control  of  tyrannical 
officials,  in  whose  appointment  they  had  no  voice  or  influence,  the 
white  inhabitants  of  Mexico  were  the  more  tenacious  of  their  irre- 
sponsible claims  to  the  servitude  of  the  conquered  Mexicans. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century,  during  the  adminis- 
tration of  Don  Pedro  de  Contreras,  sixth  viceroy  of  Mexico,  and 
the  first  who  held  office  as  a  servant  of  the  holy  inquisition  in  that 
country,  stringent  examination  was  made  into  the  conduct  of  the 
corrupt  officers  of  government,  and  severe  measures  were  resorted 
to  in  puTiishment  of  their  iniquitous  courses.  At  this  period  also 
the  power  of  the  church  was  further  strengthened  by  the  operations 
of  the  indefatigable  Jesuits,  who,  with  their  usual  zeal  and  energy 
Vol.  III.— 12 


I   \ 


#' 


178 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UI8T0BY. 


ia  behalf  of  their  faith,  oommenoed  a  regular  system  of  iustruoting 
the  Indian  population. 

Under  the  government  of  Don  Pedro's  successor,  Mexico  suffered 
severely  from  the  depredations  of  the  bucaniera,  who  ravaged  por- 
tions of  the  western  coast  and  plundered  the  rich  galeons  freighted 
with  precious  metal,  or  with  cargoes  of  rare  goods  from  the  £ast, 
bound  for  Mexican  ports.  The  names  of  Drake  and  Cavendish, 
among  others,  were  a  terror  to  the  defenceless  population,  who,  from 
the  restrictions  against  bearing  arms  imposed  by  the  government, 
wore  prevented  from  opposing  any  effectual  resistance.  A  galeon 
laden  with  commodities  from  the  Philippine  islands,  and  destined 
for  the  port  of  Acapulco,  was  captured  by  Drake  near  the  entrance 
of  the  gulf  of  California,  and,  after  being  plundered,  was  set  on  fire 
and  abandoned.  This  loss  was  heavily  felt,  as  the  restrictive  policy 
of  Spain  precluded  any  commerce  with  the  East  Indies,  further  than 
the  cargo  of  a  single  vessel  in  the  course  of  a  year.  Such  tyrannical 
ordinances  necessarily  induced  an  extensive  system  of  smuggling, 
which  was  .conducted,  especially  in  later  times,  with  extraordinary 
boldness,  by  armed  vessels  from  different  European  countries.  These 
illicit  traders  were  often  sufficiently  strong  to  cope  successfully  with 
the  Spanish  guarda  castas^  whose  employiT\ent  was  the  protection  of 
the  revenue  and  the  exclusion  of  forbidden  traffic. 

The  year  1607  was  memorable  for  the  commencement  of  the 
gigantic  works  by  which  the  city  of  Mexico  has  been  secured  against 
the  disastrous  inundations  to  which  it  was  formerly  liable.  Enrique 
Martinez,  a  distinguished  engineer,  was  commissioned  for  the  under- 
taking by  the  viceroy,  Don  Louis  Velasco.  The  waters  of  the  upper 
lakes,  Zuinpango  and  San  Christoval,  had  been  with  partial  success 
excluded  by  dikes  from  overflowing  the  city,  when  swollen  by  the 
rise  of  their  tributary  streams.  It  was  proposed  to  carry  otl"  the 
excess  of  water  by  a  canal  through  the  lower  portion  of  the  elevated 
or  mountainous  region  which  hetns  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico.  Some 
fifteen  thousand  Indians  were  compelled  to  enter  upon  the  labours 
of  this  stupendous  undertaking,  and  tiie  main  obstacle,  the  hill  of 
Nochistongo,  was  tunnelled  in  less  than  a  year.  The  canal  was 
finished,  and  might  have  fully  answered  its  purpose  but  for  the 
imperfect  construction  of  the  subterraneous  works.  Becoming  re- 
peatedly clogged  and  out  of  repair,  it  was  abandoned  for  a  series  ol 
\  ears,  and  the  old  dikes  were  rebuilt.  In  1629  Martinez  was  again 
directed  to  open  the  canal.     While  the  work  was  in  progress,  this 


TIIK  CONQUSBT  AND  HISTORY  OF   MEXICO. 


179 


engineer  caused  the  entrance  of  the  gallery  to  be  closed,  in  order,  as 
he  afterwards  averred,  to  protect  his  unfinished  works  from  destruc- 
tion by  an  anticipated  rise  of  water.  "  In  one  night,"  says  Ward, 
"the  whole  town  of  Mexico  was  laid  under  water,  with  the  exception 
of  the  great  square  and  one  of  the  suburbs.  In  all  the  other  streets 
the  water  rose  upwards  of  three  feet;  and  during  five  years,  from 
1629  to  1684,  canoes  formed  the  only  medium  of  communication 
between  them.  The  foundations  of  many  of  the  principal  houses 
were  destroyed;  trade  was  paralyzed;  the  lower  classes  reduced  to 
the  lowest  state  of  misery ;  and  orders  were  actually  given  by  the 
court  of  Madrid  to  abtodon  the  town,  and  build  a  new  capital  in 
the  elevated  plains  between  Tacuba  and  Tacubaya,  to  which  the 
waters  of  the  lakes,  even  before  the  Conquest,  had  never  been 
known  to  extend." 

At  a  subsequent  period  an  immense  embankment  or  dyke  was 
constructed  between  the  lakes  of  Tezcuco  and  San  Christoval,  and 
the  gallery  of  Nochistongo  was  converted  into  an  open  channel,  by 
removing  an  enormous  amount  of  superincumbent  earth.  To  com- 
plete this  canal,  known  as  the  Desague  of  Huehuetoca,  and  the  dam 
which  separated  the  two  lakes,  involved  an  immense  expenditure  of 
life  and  suffering.  In  the  words  of  the  writer  above  quoted:  "In 
those  days  the  sacrifice  of  life,  and  particularly  of  Indian  life,  in 
public  works,  was  not  regarded.  Many  thousands  of  the  natives 
perished  before  the  desague  was  completed;  and  to  their  loss,  as 
well  as  to  the  hardships  endured  by  the  survivors,  may  be  ascribed 
the  horror  with  which  the  name  of  Huehuetoca  is  pronounced  by 
tlieir  descendants." 

Little  of  general  interest  pertains  to  Mexican  history  from  this 
time  until  the  occurrence  of  the  events  connected  with  the  first  rev- 
olution. The  resources  of  the  country  were  still  constantly  drained 
to  supply  the  demands  of  Spain ;  tt'  ^  bloody  sacrifices  of  the  inquis- 
itorial system  were  enacted  where  in  earlier  times  the  altars  smoked 
with  human  offerings  to  the  Aztec  divinities;  and  tyranny  and  mis- 
rule only  became  the  more  open  and  the  more  insufferable.  Until 
the  year  1670,  the  warlike  Tarahumaras  made  a  stand  against  the 
Spaniards,  waging  a  desultory  but  vexatious  war  with  the  white 
settlers.  They  were  at  last  surprised  and  defeated  through  the 
treachery  of  one  of  their  own  people.  Ten  years  later  a  more  seri- 
ctus  revolt  occurred  among  the  Indians  of  New  Mexico.  With  the 
jiid  uf  the  rude  mountain  tribes,  they  overran  the  country,  destroying 


ISO 


TUX  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTUKY. 


tlio  unprotected  and  ocattcred  plantations  and  sottlemonta  of  the 
colonistH,  and  reduced  Santa  Fe  by  sioge.  Tlio  garrison  and  inhab- 
itants made  their  e;jcape  by  night,  but  the  place  was  plundered  and 
completely  destroyed.  An  expedition,  sent  out  in  the  following  year 
by  the  Marquis  de  Laguna,  then  viceroy,  found  no  enemies  to 
encounter,  as  the  Indians  had  retired  to  their  own  quarters  in  the 
wilderness.  The  only  means  which  proved  effectual  in  regaining 
possession  of  the  country  was  the  establishment  of  numerous  garri- 
sons at  various  military  posts  provided  for  the  protection  of  the 
inhabitants.  A  force  was  thus  constantly  in  readiness  to  meet  and 
ward  off  an  unexpected  attack.  :.»,<;.?'' 

Towards  the  close  of  Laguna's  vioeroyalty  Mexico  sufTercd  unu- 
sual loss  by  the  seizure  of  the  richly  freighted  galcons  laden  with 
treasure  for  the  old  world,  by  English  and  French  privateers.  These 
lawless  and  audacious  rovers  did  not  confine  their  operations  to  the 
plundering  of  vessels  at  sea,  but  kept  the  towns  upon  the  coast  in 
continual  terror.  In  May,  1688,  Vera  Cruz  was  seized  upon  by 
Nicholas  Agrainont  and  his  companions,  who  enriched  themselves 
with  an  enormous  booty. 

One  of  the  most  important  events  which  occurred  in  Mexico  during 
the  eighteenth  century  was  the  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits  by  order  of 
Charles  III.  This  zealous  and  powerful  body  of  ecclesiastics  was 
highly  popular  in  New  Spain,  where  its  teachers  had  so  long  been 
engaged  in  extending  civilization  to  the  natives,  and  in  the  exercise 
of  their  professional  duties  among  the  whites.  Whatever  may  have 
been  the  evils  and  dangers  attendant  upon  such  an  extensive  com- 
bination of  enthusiastic  devotees  to  a  religious  cause,  certain  it  is  that 
the  conduct  of  the  Jesuits  in  America  was  generally  conscientious 
and  benevolent.  The  sympathy  of  the  Mexican  populace  was  in 
vain  extended  towards  the  proscribed  order,  and  under  the  viceroy- 
alty  of  the  Marques  de  Croix,  the  colleges  of  the  Jesuits  were  seized 
upon  by  the  government,  and  their  inmates  shipped  to  the  old  world, 
only  to  be  supereedcd  by  a  more  mercenary,  intolerant,  and  selti.-li 
priesthood. 


immense 


TTB  CONQUBBT  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO.  IQl 


COMMENCEMENT  OY  THK  PliUST  IIEVOLIITION.  —  ITUUIUOAIIAY. — 
UIDALOO. — PlRdX  OUTBREAK.  —  INSUHOENTS  DEFEATED  bT 

0 

CALLEJA.  —  llAYON  AND  M0UEL08. — C0N0ttE88  AT  ClIIL- 

PANZINOO.  —  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. — HE- 

VEUSE8  OF  TUE  PATRIOTS.  —  ITUlifilDE. 


«* 


The  overthrow  of  th(5  Spnnish  monarchy  by  Napoleon,  and  the 
establishment  of  his  brother  Joseph  upon  the  throne  of  Charles  TV., 
gave  the  original  impulse  to  that  independent  movement  which 
resulted  in  the  first  Mexican  revolution.  Don  Jose  Iturrignray,  who 
came  out  as  viceroy  in  1808,  distracted  by  contradictory  orders  from 
the  different  claimants  of  authority  in  Spain,  attempted  to  secure 
himself  by  sharing  the  responsibility  of  making  choice  with  a  body 
of  the  principal  inhabitants,  whom  he  proposed  to  assemble  as  an  extra- 
ordinary council.  This  convention  was  to  be  composed  partly  of 
native  inhabitants;  and  the  powerful  party  of  Spanish-born  immi- 
grants immediately  took  the  alarm,  and  endeavoured  to  check  by 
violence  their  first  demon.«trati()n  of  independent  action.  They  seized 
upon  the  person  of  the  viceroy,  and  sent  him,  a  prisoner,  to  Spain. 

The  Creole  population  of  Mexico  had  by  this  time  begun  to  per- 
ceive that  Spain  was  no  longer  invincible;  that,  instead  of  being,  as 
they  had  ever  been  taught,  the  mightiest  kingdom  of  the  earth,  she 
v/as  fast  sinking  to  insignificance;  and,  for  the  first  time,  they  began 
to  indulge  hopes  of  freedom.     It  is  to  be  observed,  however,  that 
upon  the  deposition  of  Ferdinand  VII.,  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico, 
conscious  that  their  own  supremacy  must  depend  upon  their  support 
of  the  actual  government,  generally  favoured  the  cause  of  Joseph, 
and  acquiesced  in  the  authority  of  his  ministers;  while  the  Creoles 
retained  their  loyalty  to  the  legitimate  monarch,  and  forwarded 
immense  sums,  raised  by  voluntary  contribution,  to  assist  his  ad- 
herents in  Old  Spain.     Between  the  two  races,  the  natives  and  the 
Spanish  immigrants,  old  feelings  of  jealousy  and  enmity  now  became 
greatly  embittered  by  political  differences,  and  in  1810  a  conspiracy 
was  formed  among  the  Creoles  for  the  purpose  of  overthrowing  the 
juithority  of  their  foreign  tyrants. 


%% 


182 


THK  I'EOl'LE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


A  premature  development  of  tlie  plot  only  hastened  the  uprising. 
The  secret  of  the  contemplated  outbreak  having  been  communicated 
to  the  government  by  a  priest,  who  had  learned  the  particulars  by 
the  confession  of  a  dying  man,  the  viceroy  immediately  took  mea- 
sures to  secure  the  principal  persons  concerned  in  the  rebellion.  The 
most  noted  of  these  was  one  Miguel  Hidalgo  y  Costilla,  an  ecclesias- 
tic, residing  near  the  town  of  San  Miguel  el  Orande  in  Guanajuanto. 
Hidalgo  received  intimation  of  his  danger  in  time  to  avoid  arrest, 
and,  with  the  aid  of  Ignacio  Allende,  a  military  commandant  at  San 
Miguel,  instantly  put  himself  at  the  head  of  a  motley  force  of  Indiana 
and  Creoles,  and  openly  marched  into  the  neighbouring  town,  and 
proclaimed  his  revolutionary  purpose.  ^ 

A  civil  war  ensued,  which,  for  the  ferocity  and  cruelty  exhibited 
by  both  parties,  has  seldom  been  surpassed  in  the  history  of  the 
world.  The  Spaniards  were  the  first  objects  of  attack  by  the  insur- 
gents; but  so  large  a  portion  of  these  M'ere  of  aboriginal  descent, 
and  so  reckless  and  unsparing  was  the  conduct  of  the  revolted  faction, 
that  the  Creole  population,  to  no  small  extent,  united  in  opposing 
their  progress.  The  city  of  Guanajuanto  first  fell  before  the  rebellious 
army,  and,  after  a  terrible  scene  of  slaughter,  was  delivered  over  to  be 
plundered.  The  followers  of  Hidalgo  already  amounted,  it  is  said,  to 
twenty  thousand  men.  At  Las  Cruces,  the  army  of  the  government, 
under  Truxillo,  was  completely  routed,  and  nothing  but  an  over- 
estimate of  its  defences  appears  to  have  prevented  Hidalgo  from 
seizing  upon  the  city  of  Mexico. 

After  having  encamped  for  a  few  days  in  the  vicinity  of  the  capi- 
tal, he  drew  off  his  forces,  leaving  leisure  and  opportunity  to  the 
viceroy  for  the  collection  and  equipment  of  a  formidable  army.  The 
royal  tro()p.s,  under  command  of  the  notorious  Calleja,  were  soon  in 
pursuit  of  the  insurgents.  A  pitched  battle  took  place  at  Aculco, 
in  which  the  artillery  and  discipline  of  the  Spaniards  more  than 
compensated  for  their  inferiority  in  numbers.  The  Indians  fought 
with  their  usual  desperate  courage,  but  afler  immense  loss  were 
compelled  to  retreat.  Pushing  on  to  Guanajuanto,  Calleja  wreaked 
his  vengeance  upon  those  among  the  inhabitants  who  were  supposed 
to  favour  the  rebellion,  by  a  brutal  massacre  of  men,  women  and 
children.  Thousands  of  these  wretched  victims,  we  are  told,  were  led 
into  the  public  square,  and  put  to  death  by  cutting  their  throats.  Hi- 
dalgo's party  retaliated  by  the  commission  of  similar  atrocities  when- 
ever Spaniards  or  those  of  pure  Spanish  descent  fell  into  their  hands. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


183 


lu  January,  1811,  another  battle  was  fought,  at  the  bridge  of 
Calderon,  near  Guanajuanto,  in  which  the  insurgents  were  utterly 
defeated,  and  their  leaders  with  the  remnant  of  their  forces  retreated 
to  Saltillo.  Two  months  later,  while  preparing  to  visit  the  United 
States  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  arms  and  ammunition  for  a 
future  attempt,  Hidalgo  and  his  principal  associates  were  betrayed 
by  one  of  their  own  number  into  the  hands  of  the  Spaniards.  The 
rebel  chief  had  little  mercy  to  expect  from  his  captors :  he  was  shot 
in  the  month  of  July  following. 

After  the  death  of  Hidalgo,  most  prominent  among  the  revolu- 
tionists appeared  Rayon,  one  of  his  companions  in  arms,  and  the 
distinguished  Morelos,  also  an  ecclesiastic.  A  year  passed  away  in 
disturbance  and  uncertainty,  but  without  any  very  important  mili- 
tary operations.  There  was  no  longer  a  powerful  and  concentrated 
body  of  armed  rebels  to  excite  the  terror  of  the  friends  of  the  gov- 
ernment, but  the  seditious  and  independent  spirit  awakened  by  what 
had  already  passed,  was  constantly  on  the  increase.  A  junta  was 
formed  at  Zitacuaro,  then  in  possession  of  thb  insurgents,  in  Septem- 
ber, 1811,  and  negotiations  were  vainly  opened  with  the  viceroy, 
Venegas,  for  the  purpose  of  a  peaceful  settlement  of  the  government 
It  was  proposed  to  offer  the  throne  of  Mexico  to  the  disgraced  king 
of  Spain,  and  to  establish  a  government  independent  of  the  old 
country  so  long  as  the  latter  should  remain  subject,  in  effect,  to 
foreign  dominion. 

These  overtures  were  received  with  utter  contempt,  and  with  the 
commencement  of  the  year  1812,  hostilities  were  renewed  on  a 
larger  scale.  After  pushing  his  way  triumphantly  until  within  a 
few  miles  of  the  city  of  Mexico,  Morelos  established  himself  at 
Cuautla  de  Amilpas  in  the  "tierra  caliente,"  to  await  the  expected 
attack  of  the  government  forces,  under  Calleja.  That  energetic 
oflu'or,  after  seizing  upon  Zitacuura,  from  which  the  revolutionary 
council,  or  junta,  escaped  by  a  timely  flight,  and  butchering  a  great 
number  of  its  inhabitants,  marched  against  Morelos,  and  laid  siege 
to  Cuautla.  All  supplies  being  cut  off,  nothing  remained  for  the 
besieged  but  flight,  as  little  was  to  be  hoped  from  a  pitched  battle. 

This  retreat,  which  took  place  at  the  beginning  of  May,  1812, 
proved  but  the  commencement  of  a  series  of  brilliant  successes. 
Morelos  made  his  head-quarters  at  Oaxaca,  and  with  little  difliculty 
extended  his  authority  throughout  the  province.  Acapulco  was  taken 
in  August,  1813.    In  the  month  of  November  following,  a  congress, 


184 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


consisting  of  the  members  of  the  former  junta,  together  with 
deputies  from  the  conquered  or  revolutionized  province  of  Oaxaca, 
convened  at  Cliilpanzingo,  and  openly  made  declaration  of  the 
independence  of  Mexico. 

The  bright  prospects  of  the  insurgents  were,  however,  soon  clouded. 
Morelos,  having  undertaken  an  expedition  against  Valladolid,  was 
defeated  by  the  government  troops  under  Llano  and  the  celebrated 
Agnstin  de  Iturbide;  his  bravest  and  most  trust- worthy  associates 
in  the  revolutionary  movement,  Don  Miguel  Bravo,  Galeana,  and 
Matamoros,  perished  in  battle,  or  by  the  hands  of  the  executioner; 
and  the  new  congress,  like  the  junta  at  Zitacuaro,  was  driven  from 
its  temporary  capital.  Oaxaca  was  reconquered  by  the  government. 
The  brave  and  devoted  Morelos  was  taken  prisoner,  and  shot  about 
the  close  of  the  year  1815. 

From  this  period  until  the  espousal  of  the  patriotic  cause  by  Itur- 
bide, in  February  of  1821,  however  the  revolutionary  spirit  may 
have  spread  among  the  masses  of  the  people,  outward  demonstration 
was  of  little  avail.  The  power  of  the  royalists  was  established 
througliout  the  greater  portion  of  the  country,  and  the  military 
chieftains  who  still  maintained  a  hostile  attitude,  unable  to  unite 
their  forces,  were  content  to  maintain  their  position  as  best  they  might 
in  the  different  districts  where  they  were  stationed.  In  Ward's 
Mexico,  the  following  summary  is  given  of  the  position  of  the  prin- 
cipal insurgent  leaders  subsequent  to  the  death  of  Morelos: 
"Guerrero  occupied  the  west  coiust,  where  he  maintained  himself 
until  the  year  ly21,  when  he  joined  Iturbide.  Rayon  commanded 
in  the  vicinity  of  Tlal])ujahua,  where  he  .successively  maintained 
two  fortified  canij)s  on  the  Cerra  del  Gallo  and  on  Coporo.  Teran 
held  the  district  of  Tehuacan  in  Puebla.  Bravo  was  a  wanderer 
throughout  the  country.  The  Bajio  was  tyrannized  over  by  the 
Padre  Torres,  while  Guadalupe  Victoria  occupied  the  important 
province  of  Vera  Cruz." 

The  officer  hust  mentioned  had  done  good  service  to  the  cause  of 
the  patriots  under  ^[o^elos,  and  in  afler-times  filled  the  first  office 
of  the  republic.  At  the  dark  jjeriod  of  whicli  e  are  now  spciking, 
he  was  reduced  to  the  last  extremitj'  by  the  persecution  of  the  royal- 
ist*. Deserted  by  his  few  remaining  followers,  and  of  too  incorrupt- 
ible a  spirit  to  be  seduced  from  the  cause  to  which  he  had  devoted 
him.sclf,  he  was  compelled  to  seek  safety  by  a  solitary  life  in  the 
wilderness.     He  "departed  for  the  mountains,  where  he  wandered 


'{' 


THE   CONQUEFT  AND  HISTORY  OP  MEXICO. 


185 


for  thirty  months,  livii.  on  the  fruits  of  the  forest,  and  gnawing 
the  bones  of  dead  aniroah  found  in  their  recesses.  Nor  did  he 
emerge  from  this  impenetrable  concealment  until  two  faithful  In- 
dians, whom  he  had  known  in  prosperous  days,  sought  him  out 
with  great  difficulty;  and,  communicating  the  joyous  intelligence 
of  the  revolution  of  1821,  brought  him  back  once  more  to  .their 
villages,  where  he  was  received  with  enthusiastic  reverence,  as  a 
patriot  raised  from  the  dead."* 

The  most  interesting  events  of  the  year  1817  are  those  connected 
with  the  gallant  but  unprofitable  career  of  Xavier  Mina,  a  Spanish 
adventurer,  who,  with  a  small  force,  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Mex- 
ican revolution.  After  various  successes,  he  was  taken  prisoner, 
and  shot  in  the  month  of  November  of  the  same  year.      . 


ESPOUSAL   OF   THE   CAUSE   OF   INDEPENDENCE   BY   ITURBIDE. — 
PROCLAMATION   AT   lOUALA. — UNION   WITH   THE   REVOLU- 
TIONARY  PARTY. — TREATY   WITH   THE   VICEROY,   AND 

SURRENDER   OF   THE   CAPITAL.  —  DISSENSIONS. 

ITURBIDE  MADE    EMPEROR. — HIS  OVERTHROW 

AND   DEATH. POLITICAL   FACTIONS. — 

SPANISH  ATTEMPTS  AT  RECONQUEST. 

Un*per  the  viceroyalty  of  Don  Juan  Ruiz  de  Apodaca,  the  sixt}'^- 
first  Spanish  governor  of  Mexico,  the  prospects  of  the  revolutionists 
were  so  unfavourable,  that  a  convenient  opportunity  appeared  to 
be  presented  for  the  re  coration  of  the  ancient  system  of  absolute 
tyranny.  Certain  franchises  and  a  partial  representation  had  been 
secured  to  the  people  by  the  provisions  of  the  constitution  promul- 
gated by  the  Spanish  Cortes  in  1812:  in  endeavouring  to  annul 
these  privileges,  and  to  reestablish  the  irresponsible  and  unchecked 
power  of  royalty,  Apodaca  only  hastened  the  final  overthrow  of 
Spanish  rule  in  Mexico. 

Agustin  de  Iturbide,  as  being  a  gallant  and  efficient  soldier,  and 
thoroughly  favourable  to  the  royal  cause,  was  selected  to  assume 

•  Mexico.  A'tWj  SpanlH!'.,  and  Rcpub'.ica;!,  by  Brantz  Mnyer. 


t 


51 

if  I 


186 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


the  command  of  the  western  provinces,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
proclaim  the  king's  absolute  authority,  and  to  put  an  end  to  thu 
constitutional  system.  The  views  of  Iturbide  had,  however,  under- 
gone a  great  change  since  his  successful  campaign  against  the  patri- 
ots; and  he  only  accepted  the  high  office  conferred  upon  him,  the 
more  efficiently  to  carry  out  his  own  secret  purposes.  These  were 
first  made  known  by  his  celebrated  proclamation,  issued  at  the  town 
of  Iguala,  where  he  was  encamped  in  the  month  of  February,  1821, 
on  his  march  westward.  The  "plan  of  Iguala,"  as  this  manifesto 
was  termed,  contained,  among  other  provisions,  the  following  bold 
and  comprehensive  declaration,  as  given  by  Mr.  Mayer  in  bis  history 
of  Mexico: 

"Article  I. — ^The  Mexican  nation  is  independent  of  the  Spanish  nation,  and  of 

every  other,  even  on  its  own  continent. 
"Art.  II. — Its  religion  shall  be  the  Ct>t>'>Iic,  which  all  its  inhabitants  profess. 
"Art.  I  it. — They  shall  all  be  united,  without  any  distinction  between  Americans 

and  Europeans. 
"  Art.  IV. — The  goremment  shall  be  a  constitutional  monarchy." 

A  junta  was  to  be  formed,  under  the  presidency  of  the  existing 
viceroy,  by  which  a  congress  should  be  convoked;  Ferdinand  VIL, 
or,  in  default  of  his  acceptance,  one  of  his  brothers,  was  to  be  invited 
to  the  throne ;  public  officers  of  every  grade,  who  should  profess 
themselves  in  favour  of  independence,  were  to  be  continued  in  office, 
while  banishment,  "without  taking  with  them  their  families  and 
effiicts,"  awaited  non-conformist  officials;  and  in  support  of  these 
principles  an  army  was  to  be  formed,  to  be  called  "the  Army  of  the 
Three  Guaranties,"  viz:  "Independence,  the  maintenance  of  Roman 
Catholicity,  and  Union." 

Iturbide's  little  army  of  eight  hundred  men  readily  embarked  in 
his  enterprise,  and,  marching  to  the  western  coast,  he  effijcted  a 
union  with  Guerrero  and  his  insurgent  forces.  The  revolutionists 
throughout  Mexico,  with  singular  unanimity,  espoused  the  cause  of 
the  new  popular  leader,  eager  to  secure  independence  of  Spain  upon 
any  terms,  and  hopeless  of  carrying  out  their  designs  for  individual 
liberty  in  the  then  present  posture  of  affiairs.  Apodaca  exhibited 
no  energy  or  determination  in  a  crisis  which  called  for  vigorous 
action,  and  the  Spanisli  portion  of  the  population  of  the  capital 
seized  upon  him,  and  threw  him  into  confinement,  as  l)eing  unfit  fur 
(lis  responsible  office. 

Ilis  successor,  Juan  O'Donoju,  found  the  great  mass  of  the  people 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OP  MEXICO. 


187 


eager  in  support  of  Iturbide.  That  successful  general  made  proposi- 
tions to  the  viceroy  for  a  peaceful  adoption  of  hit  own  scheme  by 
treaty ;  and  as  nothing  remain>'.d  subject  to  Spanish  dominion,  except 
the  city  of  Mexico  and  the  strong  fortress  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa,  his 
offers  were  accepted.  The  capital  was  surrendered  in  the  month  of 
September  (1821),  and  a  temporary  junta,  with  Iturbide  at  its  head, 
proceeded  to  enter  upon  the  duties  of  government;  the  new  congress 
met  on  the  24th  of  the  ensuing  February. 

This  body,  composed  as  it  was  of  conflicting  elements,  soon  fell 
into  great  disorder.  The  republicans  were  impatient  of  the  mon- 
archical provisions  of  the  new  system;  the  constitutionalists  were 
no  less  opposed  to  any  innovation;  while  a  strong  party,  carried 
away  by  enthusiasm  for  their  leader,  aimed  at  nothing  less  than  his 
elevation  to  the  supreme  authority.  The  latter  faction  ultimately 
prevailed,  and  by  an  irregular  and  violent  demonstration  proclaimed 
Iturbide  emperor  of  Mexico. 

Assuming  the  title  of  Agustin  the  First,  he  commenced  his  brief 
reign  in  the  month  of  May,  1822,  and  such  was  the  prepossession  in 
his  favour,  as  being  the  one  to  whom  was  chiefly  due  the  independ- 
ence of  the  nation,  that,  with  wise  and  judicious  government,  he 
might  perhaps  have  gained  over  all  his  enemies.  He  proved,  how- 
ever, to  be  unfitted  for  power.  He  interfered  forcibly  with  the 
decisions  of  the  congress;  and  in  a  few  months  after  his  accession 
to  the  throne,  dissolved  that  body,  substituting  an  assembly  of  his 
own  nomination. 

The  Mexican  people  were  ill-prepared,  by  a  8ucces.sful  revolution, 
to  submit  to  a  mere  change  of  tyrants.  Disaffection  spread  rapidly, 
and  soon  ripened  into  open  revolt.  General  Garza,  in  the  North, 
Santa  Anna,  who  was  governor  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  other  notable 
officials  headed  the  insurrection.  The  emperor  was  forced  to  suc- 
cumb, and  in  March,  1823,  abdicated  the  throne,  and  left  the  country 
in  a  vessel  provided  by  the  members  of  the  former  congress,  whom 
he  had  convened  for  the  purpose  of  tendering  his  resignation.  The 
leaders  of  the  new  revolution  took  possession  of  the  city  of  Mexico, 
and  proceeded  to  reorganize  the  government. 

"Victoria,  Bravo,  and  Negrete,"  says  Mayer,  "entered  the  capital 
on  the  27t)i  of  March,  and  were  chosen  by  the  old  congress,  which 
quickly  reassembled,  as  a  triumvirate  to  exercise  supreme  executive 
powers  until  the  new  congress  assembled  in  the  following  August. 
In  Octolicr,  1824,  this  body  finally  sanctioned  the  federal  constitution, 


188 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


which,  after  various  revolutions,   overthrows,    and  reforms,   waa 
rSadopted  in  the  year  1847."     <  !-  u  ' '  ; 

The  unwise  and  unfortunate  emperor  returned  to  Mexico  in  July, 
1824,  in  disguise,  probably  in  the  hope  of  restoring  his  fallen  fortunes. 
He  was  recognized,  taken  prisoner,  and  delivered  over  by  General 
Garza  to  the  authorities  of  the  province  of  Tamaulipas.  In  conformity 
with  a  decree  previously  passed  by  the  general  congress,  the  provin- 
cial legislative  body  at  once  condemned  the  returned  exile  to  death, 
and  he  was  accordingly  shot  on  the  19th  of  the  same  month. 

Upon  the  convention  of  the  Mexican  congress  in  1825,  the  patri- 
otic Guadalupe  Victoria  received  the  appropriate  reward  for  his  suf- 
ferings and  self-devotion  in  the  cause  of  freedom,  by  being  declared 
president  of  the  republic.  At  this  period  the  party  in  favour  of  a 
free  federal  government  was  completely  in  the  ascendancy;  various 
seditious  attempts  to  overturn  the  constitution  of  the  previous  year 
had  been  promptly  and  forcibly  suppressed ;  and  so  completely  had 
the  power  and  influence  of  the  old  Spaniards  declined,  that  they  were 
mostly  removed  from  office,  and  their  places  were  supplied  by  native- 
born  inhabitants.  The  last  hold  of  Spain  upon  her  immense  North 
American  provinces  was  by  her  retention  of  the  strong  fortress  of 
San  Juan  de  Ulloa.  '  '  '   ^ 

Opposed  to  the  existing  constitution,  and  anxious  to  secure  a  form 
of  government  less  dependent  upon  the  will  of  the  masses,  was  a 
strong  minority,  consisting  mainly  of  landed  proprietors,  those  con- 
nected with  the  church,  and  others  intimately  associated  with  tlie 
interests  of  these  powerful  portions  of  the  community.  The  move- 
ments of  this  opposition  were  centralized  by  the  establishment  of  a 
secret  society,  of  Ma.sonic  formation,  denominated  the  Escocesses. 
A  formidable  insurrection,  headed  by  Nicolas  Bravo,  who  had  es- 
poused this  side  of  the  question,  waa  quelled  by  the  instrumentality 
of  Guerrero,  without  an  engagement,  although  the  insurgents  had 
gathered  in  great  force,  with  the  apparent  determination  to  make  a 
desperate  effort  for  tlie  overthrow  of  the  federal  government. 

Gomez  Pedraza,  the  successor  to  Victoria  in  the  presidential  chair, 
was,  notwithstanding,  a  member  of  this  obnoxious  party.  At  this 
juncture  it  was  confidently  hoped,  in  Spain,  that  these  dissensions 
between  different  factions  in  Mexico  had  so  weakened  the  power  of 
the  republic  as  to  offer  the  opportunity  for  a  hostile  demonstra- 
tion ui)on  the  ecast  Such  efficient  measures  were,  however,  resorted 
to  by  the  republic,  that  these  attempts  proved  abortive.     The  ^foxi- 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


189 


can 


fle^t,  under  commani  of  Commodore  Porter,  of  the  United 
States'  navy,  not  only  proved  suflEcient  to  ward  off  the  attack  of  the 
Spanish  vessels,  but  succeeded  in  taking  numerous  valuable  prizes 
from  the  enemy. 

An  army  of  about  four  thousand  men,  under  command  of  Gen- 
eral Barradas,  was  landed  at  Tampico  for  the  purpose  of  marching 
into  the  interior,  and  taking  advantage  of  the  unsettled  state  of 
affairs  at  the  capital,  to  reestablish  the  Spanish  dominion.  This 
force,  much  reduced,  it  is  said,  by  the  sickness  attendant  upon  a 
summer  spent  near  the  Mexican  sea-board,  was  attacked  and  defeated 
in  September  of  1880,  by  the  republican  army  under  General 
Santa  Anna. 

Pedraza,  being  opposed  in  principles  to  the  great  mass  of  the 
community,  was  unable  to  retain  his  position.  He  had  been  elected 
by  a  majority  of  but  two  votes,  and  the  leaders  of  the  popular  party, 
feeling  assured  that  their  course  would  be  sustained  by  the  country, 
violently  and  unconstitutionally  overturned  his  administration.  The 
chief  of  these  new  revolutionists  were  Generals  Antonio  Lopez  de 
Santa  Anna,  Guerrero,  Montezuma,  and  Lobald,  and  Lorenzo  de 
Zavala,  the  grand  master  of  the  masonic  lodge  called  the  Yorkinos, 
and  opposed  to  that  of  the  Escocesses. 

After  a  season  of  sanguinary  tumult,  order  was  restored  in  the 
capital.  With  the  commencement  of  the  year  1829,  congress  again 
assembled,  and  formally  installed  Guerrero,  Pedraza's  opposing  can- 
didate, in  the  ofi&cc  of  president. 


190 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOKT. 


L»TJAT)mnri"n         «W»'W»T 


OTBRTHROW  OF  OUBRRERO  BT  SAXTA  ANNA  AND  BUSTAXBNTB. — 

TTRANNICAL  PROCBEOINOS  DURING  THE  ADMINISTRATION 

OP  SANTA  ANNA. — RBSISTANCB  IN  THB  PROTINCBS  OF  ZAO- 

ATECAS  AND  TEXAS.  —  THE  TEXAN  WAR. — DEFEAT  OF 

SANTA  ANNA.  —  DIFFICULTIES  WITH  FRANCE. — CIVIL 

WAR.  —  SANTA  ANNA  RESTORED  TO  POWBR. — REVOLT 

HEADED  BY  PAREDES. — HERRBRA  PRESIDENT. 


Guerrero  was  not  long  permitted  to  hold  the  reins  of  government 
So  disturbed  were  the  times,  and  so  unsettled  were  the  minds  of  the 
people,  that  it  was  easy  for  any  subtle  and  politic  intriguer  to  create 
a  popular  commotion,  and  certain  unwarrantable  or  injudicious 
assumptions  of  authority  on  the  part  of  the  president  gave  opportu- 
nity for  the  formation  of  a  new  faction,  who.se  object  was  his  destruc- 
tion. At  the  head  of  this  movement  were  Santa  Anna  and  the  vice- 
president,  Bustamente.  Mexico  was  soon  distracted  by  the  renewed 
horrors  of  civil  war.  The  unfortunate  Guerrero,  driven  from  the 
seat  of  government,  defeated  at  all  points,  and  a  fugitive  on  the 
western  sea  coast,  was  finally  seized,  tried  by  a  court  martial  for 
treasonably  levying  war  against  the  republic,  and  shot  in  the  month 
of  February,  1831. 

Bustamente  had  assumed  supreme  power  in  the  republic,  but  was 
enabled  to  rctiiin  his  position  no  longer  than  suited  the  views  of  his 
more  celebrated  and  able  associate  Santa  Anna.  This  arch  intriguer 
was  among  the  first  to  excite  an  insurrection  against  the  usurper, 
and,  although  defeated  in  the  first  engagement,  had  so  far  gained 
tlie  favour  of  the  i)eople,  that  he  was  enabled  to  bring  about  his  ends. 
Bu.stamentc  was  forced  to  yield,  and  Santa  Anna,  probably  for  the 
purpose  of  gaining  over  the  party  of  the  "Escocesses,"  restored 
Pedraza  to  his  lawful  position  of  president.  The  politic  and  suc- 
cessful general  was  himself  elevated  to  that  office  in  May  of  1833. 

One  year  later,  the  president,  relying  upon  the  adherence  of  the 
irtiiv,  and  careles.s  of  longer  cloaking  hi.s  own  inordinate  ambition 
for  .'Jolf  aggrandizement  with  an  a5.sunied  spirit  of  republicanism,  dis- 
solved congres,**,  and,  nullifying  the  constitution,  attempted  to  place 


IHK  CONQUEST  AND  UISTOBY   OF  MEXICO. 


191 


tho  whole  of  the  Mexican  states  under  the  control  of  a  central  mili* 
tary  despotism.  Every  province  was  speedily  compelled  to  submit, 
with  the  exception  of  Zacatecas  and  Texas.  The  reduction  of  the 
former  was  conducted  with  great  cruelty  and  ferocity.  The  inhab- 
itants,  after  enduring  every  enormity  from  an  unscrupulous  and 
rapacious  soldiery,  were  disarmed,  and  compelled  to  submit  to  the 
rule  of  a  military  governor. 

The  proceedings  in  Texas,  both  at  this  period  and  during  the 
more  important  and  eventful  campaign  of  the  spring  of  1886,  will 
be  found  more  fully  detailed  in  our  sketch  of  the  history  of  that 
state.  The  Mexican  army,  under  General  Cos,  overran  the  refrac- 
tory province,  and  without  difficulty  broke  up  the  legislative  assem- 
bly,  and  bore  down  for  the  time  all  opposition.  The  so-called  "Plan 
of  Toluca,"  by  which  the  legislative  power  of  the  separate  Mexican 
states  was  annulled,  and  a  central  form  of  government  established, 
went  into  operation;  but  the  Texans,  instead  of  yielding  to  their 
fate,  assumed  an  attitude  of  sterner  and  more  determined  resistance. 
A  series  of  brilliant  victories  lefl  them  free  from  Mexican  usarpation, 
and  the  tyrannical  president,  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies, 
saw  his  prospects  of  ambition  blighted,  as  then  appeared,  for  ever. 
In  1838  he  had  opportunities  for  retrieving  his  military  reputation, 
upon  the  occasion  of  the  revolt  headed  by  the  unfortunate  Mexia, 
for  the  purpose  of  restoring  the  old  republican  system. 

During  the  following  winter,  the  claims  of  France  to  remuneration 
for  former  injuries  received  by  French  subjects  in  Mexico,  and  in 
respect  to  various  other  unsettled  questions  in  dispute  between  the 
two  nations,  were  enforced  by  a  hostile  demonstration.  The  town 
of  Vera  Cruz  was  blockaded,  and  the  castle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa, 
deemed  impregnable  by  its  Mexican  possessors,  was  taken  after  a 
six  hours'  cannonade.  Santa  Anna's  services  on  this  occasion,  in 
defending  the  town  from  the  forces  landed  by  the  French,  are  spoken 
of  in  terms  of  high  commendation.  The  loss  of  his  leg,  by  a  small 
cannon-ehot,  also  served,  so  far  as  such  a  circumstance  might  affect 
popular  feeling,  to  secure  him  a  greater  degree  of  sympathy  and 
favour  from  his  countrymen. 

BuaUimente  was  at  this  period  president  of  Mexico.  The  success- 
ful revolution  in  Texas,  and  insurrections  in  the  eastern  provinces  of 
Couhuila,  Tamaulipas,  and  Durango,  and  in  Yucatan,  disturbed  the 
])L'ace  of  the  nation;  while  the  grievous  burden  of  supporting  the 
heavy  expenses  of  the  government  and  the  army,  aroused  a  general 


I 


J 


t 


192 


THE   PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  U18T011Y. 


discontent.  The  president  became  unpopular,  and  weighty  influcncca 
were  brought  to  bear  for  hia  overthrow.  Santa  Anna,  supported  by 
Paredes,  Valencia,  and  Lombardini,  had  organized  a  powerful  party, 
and  again  aspired  to  the  presidency.  The  outbreak  occurred  in  the 
month  of  August,  1841 ;  the  capital  itself  was  the  scene  of  action. 

As  described  by  Mr.  Mayer:  "For  a  whole  month  the  contest  was 
carried  on  with  balls  and  grape-shot  in  the  streets  of  Mexico;  whilst 
the  rebels,  who  held  the  citadel  outside  the  city,  finished  the  shame- 
less drama  by  throwing  a  shower  of  bombs  into  the  metropolis, 
shattering  the  houses,  and  involving  innocent  and  guilty,  citizens^ 
strangers,  combatants  and  non-combatants,  in  a  common  fate.  Thii^ 
cowardly  assault,  under  the  orders  of  Valencia,  was  made  solely  with 
a  view  of  forcing  the  citizens,  who  were  unconcerned  in  the  quarrel 
between  the  factions,  into  insisting  upon  the  surrender  of  Mexico,  in 
order  to  save  their  town  and  families  from  destruction." 

An  interview  was  finally  brought  about  between  the  leaders  of 
the  two  parties,  and  the  result  of  their  negotiations  was  the  "Plan 
of  Tacubaya,"  under  the  provisions  of  which  supreme  power  was 
placed  in  the  hands  of  General  Santa  Anna,  until  a  congress  should 
be  chosen,  and  assembled  to  establish  a  new  constitution.  That  any 
really  independent  action  could  be  taken  by  a  convention  of  dele- 
gates under  such  circumstances,  was  scarcely  to  be  expected.  The 
dictator,  perceiving  that  he  could  not  carry  out  his  original  plans 
for  maintaining  a  central  government,  again  dissolved  the  assenvbly, 
and  assumed  the  entire  control  of  affairs,  through  a  junta  of  his  own 
appointment.  A  constitution  was  formed  by  this  body  in  1843,  of 
a  character  widely  variant  from  that  of  1824,  and  little  calculated  to 
meet  the  approval  or  acceptance  of  the  people. 

In  the  winter  of  1844,  congress  having  been  convened,  a  largo 
appropriation  was  made  for  the  purpose  of  a  renewed  attempt  upon 
the  liberties  of  the  victorious  colonists  of  Texas.  Before,  however, 
any  effectual  measures  were  adopted  for  carrying  out  this  project, 
the  opponents  of  the  president,  under  the  direction  of  General  Pa- 
redes, rose  against  the  existing  government.  A  year  passed  by, 
during  which  the  country  was  distracted  by  a  contest  between  three 
parties;  for  Santa  Anna,  having  violated  a  provision  of  the  new 
constitution,  by  assuming  military  power  without  special  authority 
from  the  congress,  had  created  new  opponents  upon  constitutional 
grounds. 

In  January  of  1845  the  party  of  Paredes  was  successful :  Santa 


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THE  CONQUEST  AND  III8T0BY  OF  MEXICO. 


193 


Anna  was  taken  prisoner  while  endeavouring  to  make  his  escape  to 
the  eastward,  and  General  Jos6  Joaquim  de  Herrera,  being  president 
of  the  council,  succeeded  to  the  highest  office  of  the  state,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  provision  of  a  previous  enactment. 


ANNEXATION   OF   TEXAS  TO  THE  UNITED   STATES.  —  INDIGNATION 
OP  MEXICO. —  SLIDELL'S  COMMISSION. —  PREPARATIONS  AGAINST 
TEXAS. — GENERAL  TAYLOR'S   MARCH   TO   THE   RIO   GRANDE. 
— COMMENCEMENT  OF  HOSTILITIES. — WAR  DECLARED. — 
PLAN   OF  THE   MEXICAN  CAMPAIGN. — BATTLE  OF  PALO 
ALTO;    OF   RESACA   DE   LA   PALMA. — MATAMORAS 
OCCUPIED. —  RETURN   OF  SANTA   ANNA  TO   MEX- 
ICO.— REDUCTION   OF   MONTEREY.   ' 


The  inhabitants  of  Texas,  although  they  had  ever  since  the  year 
1836  enjoyed  the  blessings  of  a  free  and  independent  government, 
were  anxious  to  secure  the  political  and  commercial  advantages  of  a 
union  with  the  United  States,  Their  independence  of  Mexico,  in 
point  of  fact,  had  long  ^ince  been  recognized  by  the  United  States 
and  by  the  principal  maritime  powers  of  Europe.  In  the  month  of 
March,  1845,  the  negotiations  for  annexation  were  brought  to  a 
successful  issue  by  the  passage  of  a  resolution,  by  congress,  admitting 
the  new  state  upon  conditions  afterwards  complied  with  by  Texas. 

This  measure,  as  might  naturally  be  expected,  excited  the  utmost 
indignation  of  the  Moxiciaii  authorities.  General  Almonte,  minister 
from  Mexico  at  "W^'ashington,  after  an  angry  protest,  demanded  his 
passports.  All  friendly  communication  between  the  two  govern- 
ments was  suspended  until  the  ensuing  October,  when  the  Mexican 
government,  upon  application  through  the  American  consul,  Mr. 
Black,  agreed  to  i-eoeive  a  commissioner  from  the  United  Stuto.^*,  for 
tlie  purpose  of  an  amicable  arrangement  of  the  disputed  question. 
Mr.  John  Slidell  was  appointee^  to  this  responsible  service,  and  iin- 
meiliatoly  ])roceeded  to  Vera  Cruz  on  his  way  to  the  capital. 

General  Paredes  had  in  the  mean  time  organized  a  party  of  those 
opt)o.sod  to  a  poacefnl  settlement,  and  so  formidable  was  the  a.sijoct 
Vol.*  III.— 13 


194 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


of  this  movement,  that  the  Mexican  ministry,  probably  to  propitiate 
the  malcontents,  postponed  negotiations  with  Mr.  Slidell  upon  friv- 
olous pretexts  of  irregularity  in  his  commission.  At  the  close  of 
the  foliowiiig  December,  President  Herrera  resigned  his  office  to 
Paredes,  and  all  efforts  of  the  United  States'  envoy  to  open,  in 
accordance  with  further  instructions  from  home,  friendly  communi- 
cations with  the  new  government,  proved  fruitless.  He  therefore 
lefl  Mexico,  leaving  the  purposes  of  his  mission  unaccomplished. 

Under  the  military  dictator  who  now  wielded  the  destinies  of 
Mexico,  immediate  preparations  were  made  for  the  reconquest  of 
Texas.  A  considerable  force  wus  already  stationed  at  Matamoras, 
and  thither  General  Ampudia  was  dispatched,  in  April,  1846,  with 
a  body  of  cavalry.  Two  thousand  more  troops  were  ordered  to  the 
same  station. 

General  Zachary  Taj'lor,  who  had  been  for  some  months  previous 
stationed,  in  command  of  United  States'  troops,  at  Corpus  Christi, 
having  received  orders  to  march  to  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande, 
reached  Point  Isabel  on  the  25th  of  March;  and  leaving  a  portion 
of  his  troops  to  occupy  a  position  at  that  place,  moved  up  the  river 
until  opposite  Matamoras.  lie  there  caused  works  to  be  erected, 
and  stationed  a  battery  which  commanded  the  town.  Generals 
Arista  and  Ampudia  were  soon  upon  the  spot,  in  command  of  a 
large  and  constantly-increasing  force.  Upon  communication  being 
established  between  the  commanding  officers, of  the  respective  forces. 
General  Taylor  was  commanded  to  draw  off  his  troops,  as  having 
infringed  the  Mexican  rights  of  territory. 

Although,  as  has  been  truly  remarked,  the  claims  of  Mexico  ex- 
tended not  only  to  the  district  lying  between  the  Nueces  and  the 
liio  Grande,  and  traversed  by  the  United  States'  forces  on  their 
niareh  to  Matamoras,  but  to  every  portion  of  the  revolted  province 
of  Texas,  the  occupation  of  this  tract  by  the  United  States  has  been 
laid  down  by  many  a.s  the  true  cause  of  the  Mexican  war.  There  is 
.>;o!ne  nliglit  conflict  of  authorities  upon  the  question  of  the  ancient 
boundaries  of  Texas,  but  the  weight  of  authority  seems  to  point  to 
tlie  Kio  Grande  as  the  dividing  line.  The  Tcxans  had  always 
claimed  this  as  the  limit  of  their  territory  since  the  time  of  the 
revolt,  and  had  ineludi'il  the  disputed  ground  in  their  assignments 
of  repn.',sentative  districts. 

Th;it  it  was  ever  deliberately  proposed  by  the  Mexican  govern- 
ment to  undertake  a  war  with  so  powerful  a  nation  as  the  United 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


195 


States  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining  its  claims  to  this  unsettled 
district,  as  distinct  from  the  national  sense  of  injury  sustained  by 
the  Texan  annexation,  cannot  be  for  a  momept  believed.  "The 
true  origin  of  the  Mexican  war,"  says  Mayer,  "  was  not  this  march 
of  Taylor  and  his  troops  from  the  Nueces  to  the  Rio  Grande  through 
the  debatable  land:  the  American  and  Mexican  troops  were  brought 
face  to  face  by  the  act,  and  hostilities  were  the  natural  result  after 
the  exciting  annoyances  on  the  part  of  the  Mexican  government 
which  followed  the  union  of  Texas  with  our  confederacy." 

The  first  encounter  took  place  on  the  24th  of  April,  when  a  com- 
pany of  United  States'  dragoons,  under  Captain  Thornton,  were 
waylaid  while  out  upon  a  scouting  expedition  up  the  river  bank, 
and,  after  some  fighting,  in  which  sixteen  of  their  number  were 
killed  or  wounded,  were  obliged  to  surrender.  A  small  party,  com- 
missioned on  similar  service,  had  been,  previous  to  this,  cut  off  or 
taken  prisoners  by  the  Mexicans. 

This  irregular  commencement  of  open  hostilities  could  hardly  fail 
to  produce  the  greatest  excitement  throughout  the  United  States. 
General  Taylor's  small  force  had  been  ordered  to  the  Rio  Grande 
merely  as  a  check  upon  precipitate  action  by  the  Mexican  force, 
without,  perhaps,  any  anticipation  of  the  immediate  results.  Through- 
out the  Union  opinions  were  various,  both  in  regard  to  the  policy  of 
Texan  annexation  and  to  the  wisdom  of  the  movement  which  gave 
direct  occasion  for  a  rupture;  but  when  the  news  of  this  first  blood- 
shed was  spread  through  the  countrj',  the  general  feeling  was  that 
the  honour  of  the  nation  required  an  immediate  and  vigorous 
response  to  the  call  of  our  isolated  force  on  the  Rio  Grande  for  pro- 
tection and  assistance. 

Congress  was  at  the  time  in  session,  and  an  immediate  appropria- 
tion of  ten  millions  of  dollars  was  made  to  meet  the  expense  of  the 
existing  war,  and  the  enlistment  of  fifty  thousand  volunteers  was 
provided  for.  Tt  was  proposed  to  invade  Mexico  simultaneously 
from  several  quarters.  The  "Army  of  the  West,"  under  Kearney, 
was  to  penetrate  to  the  western  coast,  after  the  reduction  of  New 
Mexico;  a  large  force,  under  General  Wool,  was  to  enter  the  hostile 
territory  from  San  Antonio  de  Bexar,  as  the  "-^rmy  of  the  Centre;" 
and  the  conquest  of  the  eastern  provinces  was  to  be  assigned  to 
(lonoral  Taylor.  The  naval  forces  of  the  United  States,  both  in  the 
(!ulf  and  in  tlie  Pacific,  also  received  general  directions  for  coopera- 
tion in  the  war. 


#' 


106 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


General  Taylor,  meantime,  tlireateneel  as  lie  was  by  a  vastly  supe- 
rior force,  in  accordance  with  bis  instructions  in  case  of  emergency, 
made  a  requisition  upon  the  states  of  Louisiana  and  Texas  for  a 
reinforcement  of  volunteers.  He  then  marched  to  Point  Isabel  with 
the  most  effective  portion  of  his  army,  to  procure  provisions  and 
supplies  for  the  forces  opposite  Matamoras.  While  this  service  was 
being  effected,  General  Arista  transported  his  army  across  the  river 
to  intercept  the  escort  upon  its  return.  He  was  in  command  of  some 
six  thousand  regular  troops,  besides  a  very  considerable  body  of  raw 
recruits.  On  the  8th  of  May,  the  day  after  its  departure  from  Point 
Isabel,  the  army  under  General  Taylor,  numbering  only  two  thou- 
sand two  hundred  and  eighty-eight  men,  was  encountered  at  Palo 
Alto  by  the  forces  of  Arista. 

Against  such  overwhelming  odds  our  troops  maintained  their  posi- 
tion from  two  o'clock  P.  M.  until  night-fall.  The  Mexicans,  having 
drawn  off  their  forces,  a  council  was  held,  at  which  there  was  some 
conflict  of  opinion  as  to  the  prudence  of  further  advance.  The  gal- 
lant commander  decided,  however,  that  the  necessity  for  affording 
relief  to  the  garrison  was  sufficient  to  justify  the  hazard  of  the 
attempt,  while  the  day's  experience  .''the  comparative  cfTiciency  of 
the  two  armies  gave  reasonable  encouragement  of  success. 

On  the  day  following,  Arista  was  found  to  have  retreated  to  a 
strong  position  at  the  "Hesaca  de  la  Palma,"  a  ravine  through  Which 
tlie  road  led,  and  which  was  almost  impenetrable  on  either  side  from 
the  rank  growth  of  tropical  plants  and  underwood,  C(^inmonly  called 
the  "chai)paral."  Notwithstanding  their  favourable  })osition  and 
tjuperior  numbers,  the  Mexicans  were  unable  to  defend  the  j)aHa. 
Broken  and  disordered  by  the  fire  of  the  artillery  and  infantry,  thoy 
gave  way  in  mass  before  a  charge  of  cavalry,  and,  retreating  to  the 
river,  left  the  way  oj^en  for  the  passage  of  the  army  with  its  supplies 
to  the  fort.  The  18th  of  May  saw  Matamoras  in  possession  of  the 
American  forces. 

During  tlie  summer,  which  was  pa.s.scd  by  General  Taylor  in 
strengtlieniiig  his  position,  estrtbli-shing  linos  of  coniinunicatioii,  and 
gradually  extending  his  occupation  of  the  country,  an  inijxjrtant 
political  change  took  pluc^  in  Mexico.  A  revolutionary  movement 
in  favour  of  Santa  Anna,  then  an  exile  in  the  West  Indies,  over- 
threw the  power  of  the  usurper  Paredes.  The  ex-j»re.sidcnt  was 
allowed  to  jiass  the  United  States'  bioekading  S(jnadr(jn  by  express 
orders  from  government,  in  the  hope  that  his  inlluence  would  bo 


'^ 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


197 


exerted  to  restore  a  friendly  communication  between  the  belligerent 
countries  and  to  cement  an  honourable  peace.  This  piece  of  policy 
has  been  greatly  condemned  by  many,  and  the  implacable  animosity 
since  evinced  by  Santa  Anna  towards  the  United  States  has  con- 
tributed to  render  it  unpopular.  There  can,  however,  be  no  doubt 
but  that  the  act  was  in  accordance  with  what  then  appeared  the 
exigencies  of  the  case,  so  far  as  information  could  be  procured  as  to 
tlie  purposes  and  probable  conduct  of  the  able  but  unprincipled 
leader,  who  has  so  long  held  the  most  prominent  place  in  Mexican 
history. 

In  the  month  of  September,  the  divisions  under  Generals  Worth 
and  Taylor,  having  penetrated  to  their  future  head-quarters,  the 
Walnut  Sjiringp,  not  far  from  Monterey'',  the  capital  of  New  Leon, 
preparations  were  made  for  an  attack  upon  this  important  city.  The 
place  was  well  defended  by  artillery,  and  the  flower  of  the  Mexican 
army,  to  the  number  of  not  far  from  ten  thousand  men,  was  there 
quartered. 

On  the  21st  of  September,  the  American  forces,  only  seven 
thoupfind  strong,  were  led  in  two  divisions  to  the  attack  of  the  city. 
General  Wortli's  detachment,  after  cutting  off  communication  from 
the  south,  gained  an  important  position  upon  a  height  which  com- 
manded the  city,  and  on  which  was  a  fortification  known  as  the  Bish- 
op's palace.  '^Phe  other  division,  the  command  of  which  was  intrnstec 
to  General  Butler,  penetrated  the  city  from  the  norti),  and  notwith- 
standing the  deadly  fire  of  the  enemy,  who  were  enabled  to  fight 
from  covert,  and  whose  artillery  raked  the  streets,  continued  to 
extend  their  occupation  until  night-fall.  On  the  22d,  the  American 
troops,  taking  possession  of  the  buildings  on  either  side  of  the  ave- 
nues through  which  they  had  penetrated,  cut  their  way  from  house  to 
house  through  the  walls,  driving  the  occupants  before  them.  In  this 
manner,  with  comparative  safety,  they  gained  the  great  central  square. 

As  the  city  was  now  virtually  in  the  power  of  the  assailants, 
negotiations  were  opened  by  Ampudia,  and  on  the  24th,  a  surrender 
was  agreed  upon,  with  the  provision  that  the  Mexican  troops  should 
be  allowed  free  exit.  That  General  Taylor  did  not  insist  upon 
severe  terms,  or  follow  up  liis  victory  by  the  capture  of  prisoners, 
has  been  made  a  ground  of  causeless  reproach.  No  one  can  accuse 
the  old  warrior  of  a  want  of  decision,  energy,  or  bravery,  and  his 
conduct  in  this  instance  was  fully  in  accordance  with  his  character 
as  a  skilful  and  prudent  general.     He  had  gained  an  important  post; 


198 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  UISTOKY, 


hid  forces  wero  still  numerically  inferior  to  those  of  the  enemy ;  and 
from  what  could  be  gathered  from  the  reports  of  the  Mexican  officers, 
there  appeared  reason  to  hope  for  the  speedy  establishment  of  a 
peace,  without  further  bloodshed.  A  temporary  armistice  was  there- 
fore arranged  between  the  belligerent  armies. 


SANTA  ANNA'S  CHANGE  OF  POLICY. — GENERAL  SCOTT'S  PLAN 

0?  CA¥PAIGN. — DEFEAT  OF  THE  MEXICAN  ARMY  AT  BUENA 

YISTA. — MEXICAN  POLITICS. — CAPTURE  OF  VERA  CRUZ. 

MARCH    INTO    THE    INTERIOR.  —  BATTLE    OF    CERRO 

OORDO. — OCCUPATION  OF  PUKBLA.  —  GUERILLA  WAR- 
FARE.— FRUITLESS   NEGOTIATIONS. — ADVANCE 
UPON  THE  CAPITAL. 


Santv  Anna,  on  his  return  to  Mexico,  soon  perceived  that  the 
views  of  centralization  which  he  had  ever  entertained  must  now  be 
abandoned,  if  he  would  maintain  his  position  as  a  popular  leader. 
He  therefore  published  his  intentions  to  favour  the  federal  system 
and  the  rciestablishment  of  the  constitution  of  1824.  With  an 
affectation  of  modesty  and  of  self  sacrificing  devotion  to  his  country, 
he  declined  tiie  acceptance  of  proffered  dictatorial  powers  in  the  civil 
government,  and  avowed  his  determination  to  lend  his  whole  ener- 
gies to  the  duties  of  a  military  commander.  After  a  most  enthusi- 
astic reception  at  the  capital,  and  a  prompt  and  energetic  response 
to  his  requisitions  for  troops,  he  established  him.sclf  at  San  Luis 
Potosi,  withdrawing  himself  for  the  time  from  the  political  agitations 
which  distracted  the  city  of  Mexico,  and  spending  his  time  in  pre- 
paring and  equipping  his  fine  army.  Early  in  the  winter  of  1846 
his  available  force  amounted  to  about  twenty  thousand  men,  and  he 
rightly  judged  that  by  confirming  his  military  authority  he  more 
effectually  secured  supremacy  than  by  mingling  actively  in  factious 
politics.  He  nevertheless  accepted  office  upon  his  election  to  the 
provisional  presidency,  which  took  place  on  the  23d  of  December. 

The  United  States'  government  having  appointed  General  Winfield 


¥. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY    OF  MEXICO. 


19U 


Scott  commander  in-chief  of  the  army  in  Mexico,  extensive  prepara- 
tions were  made  for  a  new  campaign,  to  be  conducted  in  accordance 
with  the  views  of  that  veteran  chief.  It  was  proposed  to  seize  on 
Vera  Cruz,  and  thence  to  march  direct  for  the  capital.  In  collecting 
the  forces  necessary  for  so  important  an  enterprise,  great  numbers  of 
General  Taylor's  best  troops  were  drawn  off  from  the  conquered 
district  on  the  Rio  Grande,  leaving  the  army  of  occupation  in  a  con- 
dition little  capable  of  resisting  so  formidable  a  fbrce  as  that  concen- 
trated at  San  Luis,  were  there  no  disparity  between  the  respective 
armies  other  than  that  of  numbers. 

By  the  interception  of  a  dispatch,  the  Mexican  commander-in-chief, 
in  the  month  of  December,  1846,  obtained  information  respecting 
the  intended  descent  upon  Vera  Cruz,  and  it  was  soon  known  that 
he  was  busily  engaged  in  preparations  for  an  attack  upon  the  reduced 
division  on  the  Rio  Grande.  Knowing  that  he  must  prepare  to 
encounter  an  army  more  than  quadruple  the  troops  under  his  com- 
mand. General  Taylor  concentrated  his  scattered  regiments  at  the 
Pass  of  Angostura,  a  point  in  which  either  flank  was  protected  by 
mountains,  ravines  and  gullies  impassable  for  cavalry,  and  scarcely 
to  be  traversed  by  foot  soldiers.  An  advanced  guard  was  stationed 
at  Agua  Nuevn,  thirteen  miles  from  the  pass,  under  General  Wool, 
to  gain  intelligence  of  the  expected  approach  of  the  enemy. 

Taylor's  entire  force  is  set  down  at  about  four  thousand  seven 
hundred.  The  little  army  was,  however,  disposed  with  such  military 
skill,  and  in  so  favourable  a  position,  that  for  two  days  Santa  Anna 
in  vain  endeavoured  to  force  a  passage.  Ho  came  upon  the  Ameri- 
can encampment  on  the  afternoon  of  February  22d,  1847,  and  until 
night-full  and  throughout  the  following  day,  kept  the  Americans 
constantly  engaged.  The  astonishing  result  of  this  hard-fought  battle 
was  chiefly  owing  to  the  admirable  management  of  the  few  pieces 
of  artillery  possessed  by  the  defenders  of  the  pass.  On  the  night  of 
the  23d,  Santa  Anna  commenced  a  retreat  to  San  Luis  Potosi,  having 
sustained  an  immense  loss,  and  having  witnessed  the  total  failure  of 
his  attempt  against  the  weakened  army  of  occupation.  The  name 
of  the  neighbouring  hacienda  of  Buena  Vista  has  always  since  been 
applied  to  distinguish  this  memorable  and  important  engagement. 

At  this  period  a  fierce  contention  was  going  on  in  the  Mexican 
capital  between  the  supporters  of  the  vice-president  Farias,  and  the 
paitisans  of  the  church,  some  of  whose  privileges  and  emoiuinenta 
had  recently  been  curtailed.    Civil  war  was  added  anew  to  the  dan- 


;^K#'U;U 


f.     :A  L  -i!fc>:-. 


200 


THE   rEOI'LE'S   BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


rroT  nntl  anxieties  attoiidant  upon  foreign  invasion.  At  the  clcso  of 
tiio  ensuing  month,  the  friends  of  the  church  carried  tlieir  points  in 
congress:  the  ofTiee  of  the  vice-president  was  annuUed;  the  president 
himself  was  formally  put  in  command  of  the  armies — his  place  to  be 
Hujiplied  by  a  substitute  during  his  employment  in  the  field;  and  a 
new  president  was  to  be  elected  on  the  15th  of  the  ensuing  month 
of  May,  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  constitution  of  1824. 
Don  Pedro  Anaya  was  chosen  as  the  temporary  executive. 

Afeanwhile,  imjwrtant  operations  were  in  progress  on  the  coast. 
The  main  body  of  the  American  army,  under  General  Scott,  sailed 
from  the  rendezvous  at  the  island  of  Lobos,  for  Vera  Cru/,  on  the 
7th  of  March,  1847.  Notwithstanding  the  overwhelming  force 
brought  to  bear  ujton  the  place,  the  authorities  refused  to  surrender, 
trusting  pcrhr.ps  to  the  strength  of  their  renowned  fortre.s.s,  or  willing 
to  sec  their  town  battered  to  pieces,  rather  than  permit  the  hated 
foreigners  to  })ursuc  their  career  of  conquest  unmolested.  A  can- 
nonade was  commenced  on  the  18th,  from  the  ships  lying  off  the. 
harbour  and  from  the  batteries  planted  on  the  land,  which  continued, 
with  little  intermission,  until  the  2()th,  when  the  garrison  capitidated. 
The  town  was  terribly  shattered,  and  the  needless  destruction  of 
nearly  one  thousand  of  the  inhabitants,  of  every  age  and  sex,  was  the 
result  of  the  obstinacy  or  infatuation  of  the  commanding  ofTiccrs. 
l)uring  the  continuance  of  the  bombardment  "it  is  estimated  that 
our  army  a  1  navy  threw  into  the  town  about  six  'l.iusand  shot 
and  shells,  weighing  upwards  of  463,000  pounds." 

The  Ciistle  of  San  Juan  de  Ulloa  was  at  the  same  time  surrendered ; 
and  a  great  amount  of  arms  and  artillery  was  taken  possession  of  by 
the  victors:  some  five  thousand  prisoners  of  war  were  set  at  liberty 
upon  parole.  The  command  of  Vera  Cruz  was  assigned  to  General 
Worth,  and  the  commander-in-chief,  with  between  eight  and  nine 
thousand  troop.s,  took  up  his  line  of  march  for  the  interior. 

President  Santa  Arna,  having  now  hastened  to  the  future  scene 
of  action,  commenced  a  reconnoissance  of  the  road  for  the  selection 
of  a  suitalile  spot  for  a  stand  to  be  made  against  the  invaders.  lie 
decided  upon  taking  a  position  at  Cerro  Gordo,  where  the  liighway 
enters  the  mountain  country.  The  locality  is  thus  described  by  Mr. 
Mayer:  "About  seven  leagues  from  Jalajta  the  edge  of  one  of  the 
table  lands  of  the  Cordillera  sweeps  down  from  the  west  abruptly 
into  this  pass  of  the  river  Plan.  On  both  sides  of  this  precipitous 
el  jvation  the  mountains  tower  majestically.     The  road  winds  slowly 


TH 

nnil  rouglil^ 
it.     When 
fimiul  to  be 
otliiT  sidi! 
riiviiic,  Mcvc 
twooii  tlio  rti 
unite  and  j)I 
oftlic  Hill  . 
(if  Atiiliivii, 
fiDiii  below, 
rocks  jiiul  fo 

111  this  8t 
ndviUitiigeuu 
thousand  inc 
fin  attack. 
17th  of  Apri 
oftlic  Mcxic 
centre  and  ei 
ous  batteries, 
gave  the  a.ss; 
oners  were  ti 
hundred  tiiiti 
taibiiiiltcd  w 
castle,  which 
ordiiance~ui 
of  the  Arneri 

Santa  Aim 
vailing  attem 
General  Woi 
oceujiied  by 
was  opjKjsed 
Santa  Anna, 
which  would 
most  reliable 
lection  of  tro( 
of  its  defence 
the  national  li 
in  which  savi 
ill  its  prosecu 
attended  the 


THE   CONQUEST   AND  IHSTOKY  OF  MEXICO. 


201 


mill  rouglily  uIdul;  llic  scant  Hides  wliicli  liuvc  boon  uotclieil  to  receive 
it.  Wlioii  the  snniiiut  uf  the  piuss  is  uttainetl,  Diie  Hide  of  the  road  id 
found  to  be  overlooked  by  the  Hill  of  tlic  Telograi»li,  while  on  the 
other  side  the  streamlet  runs  in  nu  iniineiiHely  deep  and  iiigged 
riiviuc,  .several  hundii;il  feet  below  the  level  of  the  table-land.  He- 
tween  the  road  and  tlir  iiver  many  ridge.s  of  the  nei«/hbunring  hills 
iniite  and  plunge  downwards  into  the  irn])a.ssablo  uby.->s.  At  the  loot 
of  the  Hill  of  the  Telegraph  rises  another  endnenee,  known  as  that 
of  Atalaya,  whieh  is  hemmed  in  by  other  wooded  heights  rising 
from  below,  and  forming,  in  front  of  the  position,  a  boundary  of 
rocks  jind  forests  beyond  whieh  the  sight  cannot  penetrate." 

lu  this  strong  position,  defended  by  fifty-two  pieces  of  artillery 
advantageously  posted,  and  an  army  of  between  three  and  four 
thousand  men,  exclusive  of  liis  reserved  forces,  Santa  Anna  awaited 
an  attack.  The  famous  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo,  eommtiieing  on  the 
17th  of  April,  after  a  two  day.s'  conflict,  resulted  in  the  unnihilaliou 
of  the  Mexican  army.  On  the  Itith  a  simultaneous  assault  upon  the 
centre  and  either  flank,  in  the  face  of  u  terrible  fire  from  the  numer- 
ous batteries,  and  conducted  under  every  disadvantage  in  jxisition, 
gave  the  assailants  a  complete  victory.  About  three  thousand  pris- 
oners were  taken,  among  whom  were  five  generals,  and  nearly  three 
hundred  tninor  officers.  Jalapa  and  Perot(5  immediately  afterwards 
.submitted  without  resistance.  At  the  latter  place  was  a  fortified 
castle,  which,  with  all  its  artillery — nund)ering  fifty-four  pieces  of 
ordnance — and  great  stores  of  munitions  of  war,  fell  into  the  hands 
of  the  Americans. 

Santa  Anna,  with  such  forces  as  he  could  collect,  made  an  una- 
vailing attempt  to  arrest  the  progress  of  the  advanced  division,  under 
General  Worth,  and  on  the  22d  of  the  ensuing  month,  Puebla  was 
occupied  by  the  American  advance.  No  further  seiious  obstacle 
was  opjuised  to  the  progress  of  General  Scott  towards  the  capital. 
Santa  Anna,  in  the  midst  of  utter  political  confusion,  the  detJiils  of 
whieh  would  entirely  surpass  our  limits,  was  still  looked  upon  as  the 
most  reliable  leader.  lie  was  obliged  to  confine  himself  to  the  col- 
lection of  troops  for  the  preservation  of  the  capital,  to  the  increasing 
of  its  defences,  and  to  the  arousal  by  every  means  in  his  power  of 
the  national  hatred  against  the  invaders.  A  bloody  guerilla  warfare, 
in  whieh  savage  cruelty  on  the  part  of  the  lawless  bands  engaged 
ill  its  prosecution  too  often  provoked  retaliation  equally  un.sparing, 
attended  the  onward  march  of  the  army,  and  the  maintenance  of  the 


202 


TflK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


garrisons  and  military  lines  of  communication  throughout  the  cou- 
quered  districts. 

While  General  Scott  was  stationed  at  Puebla,  a  negotiation  was 
opened,  by  the  assistance  of  the  British  minister,  between  the  Amer- 
ican commissioner,  Mr.  Trist,  and  the  Mexican  president.  Certain 
violent  denunciations  in  a  recent  decree  of  congress  against  any  who 
should  propose  or  entertain  any  plans  for  the  conclusion  of  a  treaty 
with  the  United  States,  rendered  both  tho  president  and  the  legisla- 
tive members  exceedingly  cautious  respecting  their  movements  in 
this  emergency.  The  negotiation  proved  entirely  fruitless,  but  it  led 
to  a  singular  secret  corresponderice  between  Santa  Anna  and  the 
American  commanding  officers.  The  former  made  propositions  for 
the  appointment  of  commissioners  to  negotiate  a  peace,  conditionally 
upon  tlie  placing  at  his  own  disposal  of  a  considerable  sum  of  money, 
and  the  promise  of  a  much  larger  payment  upon  the  satisfactory  con- 
clusion of  a  treaty.  General  Scott,  in  accordance  with  the  opinions 
of  a  majority  of  his  principal  military  associates,  consented  to  this 
first  payment — amounting  to  ten  thousand  dollars — out  of  a  "secret 
service"  fund  at  his  disposal,  continuing  meanwhile  his  preparations 
against  the  capital.  As  nothing  of  importance  resulted  from  this 
correspondence,  it  remains  merely  a  matter  of  curious  inquiry 
whether  the  Mexican  dictator  was  really  influenced  by  any  other 
motives,  in  his  conduct  relating  to  this  affair,  than  by  the  hope  of 
private  emolument. 

General  Scott's  army,  recruited  to  about  the  number  of  ten  thou- 
sand men,  by  the  middle  of  August  lay  encamped  at  Ayotla,  Chalco, 
and  in  the  vicinity,  within  the  valley  of  Mexico,  and  upon  the  bor- 
ders of  the  marshy  lake  of  Chalco.  Santa  Anna,  who  had  collected 
three  times  this  number  of  troops,  had  not  been  idle  in  preparing  for 
the  defence  of  every  available  route  to  the  city.  The  extent  to 
which  arms  and  ammunition  had  been  manufactured  in  the  country 
to  meet  the  exigency  of  the  occasion,  and  the  strength  and  scientific 
structure  of  the  fortifications,  aroused  the  admiration  of  those  unac- 
quainted with  the  resources  of  the  nation. 

After  a  thorough  reconnoissance  of  the  Mexican  deftjnces,  the 
American  commander-in-chief  decided  upon  pursuing  his  march 
around  the  southern  border  of  the  lake  to  Tla'pam,  or  San  Agustin, 
where  the  road  joins  the  great  southern  highway  leading  to  the 
capital.  This  position  was  accordingly  occupied,  little  opposition 
having  been  experienced  upon  the  route,  on  the  17th  and  18th  ol 


THE   CONQUEST  AND    HISTORY  OF  MEXICO. 


203 


the  month.  The  Mexican  commander  laboured  under  the  disadvan- 
tage of  being  compelled  to  distribute  his  forces  among  the  various 
fortifications  on  either  of  the  four  routes  by  which  General  Scott 
might  make  a  descent  upon  the  city,  and  these  posts  were  at  such  a 
distance  from  each  other  that  several  days  must  elapse  before  the 
main  body  of  the  army  could  be  concentrated  at  any  threatened  point. 


MOVEMENTS    OF    SANTA    ANNA. — HIS    PLANS    THWARTED    BY 

VALENCIA. BATTlE    AT    CONTRERAS. SEIZURE     OF    SAN 

ANTONIO.  —  BATTLE  OF  CHURUBUSCO.  —  NEGOTIATIONS-  — 
STORMING   OF  THE   MOLINO    PEL    RET    AND    THE    CA3A 

MATA. — OF     THE     FORTRESS     OF     CHAPULTEPEC. 

EVACUATION  OF  THE  CITY.  —  ITS  OCCUPATION  BY 
THE  AMERICAN  FORCES.  —  FINAL  MILITARY  OP- 
ERATIONS.—  TREATY  AT  GUADALUPE  HIDALGO. 


Santa  Anna,  upon  learning  the  movement  of  the  Americans, 
hastened  to  collect  the  detached  divisions  of  his  army  in  time  to 
intercept  the  passage  of  the  southern  route  to  the  city.  He  took  his 
own  position  at  the  hacienda  of  San  Antonio  upon  the  main  road, 
and  di.-^patched  General  Valencia  to  the  defence  of  the  only  other 
pnicticable  route,  that  by  San  Angel  and  Cayacan,  leading  by  a  mule- 
path,  across  the  rugged  plain  of  lava  called  the  Pedregal,  and  along 
tlie  base  of  the  western  mountain  range. 

According  to  the  arrangements  of  the  Mexican  commander-in-chief, 
a  vastly  superior  force  could  be  brought  into  action  at  either  point 
where  the  invaders  might  attempt  to  force  a  passage;  but  his  plana 
were  disconcerted  by  the  di.sobcdience  and  obstinacy  of  his  subordi- 
nate. Valencia,  in  defiance  of  orders,  moved  southward  with  his 
forces,  and  erected  works  of  defence  at  Contreras,  or  Padierna, 
between  the  Pedregal  and  the  mountains;  thus  cutting  off  commu- 
nication with  the  army  at  San  Antonio,  and  rendering  his  command 
nearly  useless  by  the  occupation  of  ground  said  to  have  been  pro- 
nounced indefensible  by  competent  engineers. 

The  result  proved  the  folly  of  his  conduct.  On  the  19th  of  Au- 
gust, one  division  of  the  American  army,  unaided  by  cavalry  op 


p'mn 


201 


THE  rEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


I 


artillery,  forced  a  jiassagc  over  tlie  rough  plain  of  lava,  and  attackoi] 
the  !Nfexican  fortifications.  Night  came  on,  with  cold  and  hcavv 
rain,  before  any  decisive  result,  but  on  the  next  morning  the  works 
were  stormed,  and  a  complete  victor}'  was  gained  by  the  Americans. 
Tlie  Afexican  loss,  of  those  who  fell  upon  the  field,  or  were  taken 
prisoners,  was  not  far  from  fifteen  hundred,  and  great  stores  of  artil- 
lery and  small-arms,  together  with  mules,  horses,  &c.,  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  victors. 

The  victory  at  Contreras  was  but  the  commencement  of  the  bril- 
liant achievements  of  the  American  army  on  this  eventful  20th  of 
August.  Santa  Anna,  with  a  powerful  reserve,  had  approached  the 
scene  of  action  during  the  contest,  but  too  late  to  offer  any  effectual 
a.ssistance.  The  works  at  the  hacienda  of  San  Antonio  were  forced 
and  occupied  by  a  masterly  movement  of  the  division  under  General 
Worth,  and  the  garrison  of  about  three  thousand  men,  in  full  retreat 
towards  the  capital,  was  met,  and  a  second  time  defeated  by  the  forces 
under  Colonel  Clarke,  who  had  made  a  circuit  through  the  Pedregal 
from  the  western  road. 

At  the  village  of  Churubuaco,  on  the  great  road,  between  San 
Antonio  and  the  city  of  Mexico,  strong  military  works  had  been 
erected.  The  convent  of  Sa<i  Pablo,  at  that  spot,  was  garrisoned 
and  strongly  fortified;  the  bridge  by  which  the  road  there  crosses  a 
stream  was  protected  by  a  "/cte  dn  pont;"  and  every  thing  connected 
with  the  locality  offered  advantages  for  a  stand  against  the  invadini' 
army.  Little  time  was  given  to  the  Mexicans  to  collect  and  dispose 
their  forces  at  this  stronghold  ere  it  was  attacked  with  the  greatest 
impetuosity.  The  Ate  (le  jwnt  was  forced  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet 
and,  after  several  hours'  hard  fighting,  the  convent  shared  the  simic 
fate.  A  detachment  under  Generals  Pierce  and  ShicMa  ha<l  mean- 
time been  engaged  in  making  a  detour  to  cut  off  retreat  to  the  cap- 
ital. As  the  division  of  the  latter  aj)proaclied  the  main  road,  it  was 
encountered  by  some  four  thousand  of  the  enemy.  A  severe  en- 
gagement ensued,  in  which  the  fortune  of  the  day  was  still  with  the 
Americans.  The  victorious  troops  under  Generals  Worth  and  Pil- 
low, af\er  the  reduction  of  Churubusco,  continued  to  press  on  towards 
the  capital;  and,  falling  in  with  Shields'  division,  a-ssistcd  in  the 
pursuit  of  the  fugitive  Mexicans.  The  latter  were  now  deprived  of 
every  means  of  defence  by  the  southern  route  up  to  the  walls  of  the 
city,  and  the  ancient  capital  itself  appeared  already  witiiin  thegnusp 
of  the  American  commander. 


! 


TH 


II 
i 

ii 


GENERAL  SCOTT. 


On  the  21; 
for  commen 
were  receive 
ther  effusioi 
danger  of  e 
irig  u  large  ] 
chief  wisely 
the  purpose 

In  the  be 
congress  ecu 
already  left 
combined  an 
continued  to 
begun  to  los 
work  for  hi 
interval  oftr 
by  the  Mex: 
appear  to  h 
in  defiance  o 
the  defence  < 

General  Si 
September,  t 
unless  atonei 
lie  received, 
eral's  head-q 
of  the  city,  a 
the  strong  en 
military  wor 
Casa  Mata,  \ 
vicinity  at  tl 

To  force  ai 
before  an  at 
case  of  succ 
retreat,  from 
might  fail  to 
what  may  be 
Eoy  and  Ca? 
of  the  citv; 
storm  Cliapii 

The  ri'ini 


,-•   .      .    .-.'fv' 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  IHSTOKY  OF  MEXICO. 


205 


On  tlie  21st,  as  General  Scott  was  already  engaged  in  arrangements 
for  commencing  an  assault  upon  the  city,  proposals  for  an  armistice 
were  received  from  the  Mexican  authorities.  Willing  to  spare  fur- 
ther effusion  of  blood,  and  conscious  of  the  extreme  difficulty  and 
danger  of  entering  a  crowded  city,  strongly  built,  and  still  contain- 
ing a  large  force  of  regular  soldiery,  the  American  commander-in- 
chief  wisely  consented  to  the  temporary  cessation  of  hostilities,  for 
the  purpose  of  negotiating  a  treaty  that  might  end  the  war. 

In  the  beleaguered  capital  all  was  tumult  and  confusion.  The 
congress  could  hardly  be  said  to  exist,  as  many  of  its  members  had 
already  left  the  city.  Intrigues  and  private  animosity  precluded  any 
combined  and  sober  action,  while  an  ignorant  and  infuriated  mob 
continued  to  cry  out  for  resistance  to  the  last.  The  Mexicans  had 
begun  to  lose  faith  in  their  president,  and  powerful  parties  were  at 
work  for  his  overthrow.  In  the  negotiations  which  occupied  the 
interval  of  truce,  the  American  demands  were  considered  extravagant 
by  the  Mexican  commissioners  and  their  superiors,  and  the  latter 
appear  to  have  only  sought  delay,  by  means  of  which  they  might, 
in  defiance  of  stipulations,  strengthen  their  works  and  reorganize  for 
the  defence  of  their  city. 

General  Scott  therefore  gave  notice  to  the  president,  on  the  6th  of 
September,  that  hostilities  would  recommence  on  the  following  day, 
unless  atonement  were  previously  made  for  these  breaches  of  treaty, 
lie  received,  in  reply,  but  threats  and  defiance.  The  American  gen- 
eral's head-quarters  were  fixed  at  Tacubaya,  a  few  miles  south-west 
of  the  city,  approach  to  which  from  that  quarter  was  intercepted  by 
the  strong  castle  of  Chapultcpec,  situated  upon  a  hill,  and  by  strong 
military  works  at  the  foundry  culled  the  Molino  del  Rey,  and  the 
Casa  Mata,  both  occupying  commanding  positions  in  the  irnuiediatc 
vicinity  at  the  westward. 

To  force  and  occupy  these  all-important  positions  became  necessary 
before  an  attack  could  safely  be  made  upon  the  city  itself,  lest,  in 
oa-so  of  successful  assault,  the  enemy  should  have  a  strongholtl  for 
retreat,  from  which  the  divided  and  weakened  forces  of  the  victors 
might  fail  to  dislodge  them.  The  plan  of  General  Scott  was  to  carry 
what  may  be  considered  the  out-works  of  Chapultcpec  at  Molino  del 
Key  and  Casa  Mata;  then  to  make  a  demonstration  upon  the  south 
of  the  city;  and,  having  diverted  the  attention  of  the  besieged,  to 
storm  Chajiuitopec,  and  enter  the  capital  from  the  .south-west. 

The  ri'inforccd  division  under  Gcuoral  Worth  was  accordingly 


206 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


placed  in  position  before  day-light  on  the  morning  of  the  8th  of 
September.  The  attack  commenced  with  the  first  dawn,  and,  after 
several  hours'  hard  fighting,  the  object  was  attained.  The  fortifica- 
tions at  the  Casa  Mata  were  blown  up,  and  the  moulds  and  ammu- 
nition at  the  Molino  were  destroyed.  So  remarkable  an  action 
deserves  a  more  particular  account  than  we  have  space  to  bosto^v. 
Mr.  Mayer  remarks  upon  it:  "This  was  a  great  but  a  rash  victory. 
The  American  infantry,  relying  chiefly  on  the  bayonet,  and  expect- 
ing to  effect  its  object  by  surprise,  and  even  at  an  earlier  hoar  of  the 
morning,  advanced  with  portions  of  the  three  thousand  two  hundred 
and  fifty-one  men,  to  attack  at  least  eleven  or  twelve  thousand  Mex- 
icans, upon  a  field  selected  by  themselves,  protected  by  stone  walla 
and  ditches,  commanded  by  the  fortress  of  Chapultepec,  and  the 
ground  swept  by  artillery,  while  four  thousand  cavalry  threatened 
an  overwhelming  charge!" 

The  attention  of  Santa  Anna  was  fully  occupied  by  the  apparent 
preparations  for  an  attack  upon  the  south,  until  the  13th.  So  well 
were  these  movements  planned  and  conducted,  that  it  was  impossible 
for  him  to  penetrate  the  intentions  of  the  American  commander,  al- 
though throughout  the  12th  a  heavy  cannonade  was  kept  up  against 
the  fortress  at  Chapultepec.  The  troops  stationed  at  Molino  del 
Rey  occupied  a  convenient  position  for  following  up  any  advantage 
gained  by  the  operations  of  the  artillery,  and  by  them  the  assault 
was  commenced  on  the  morning  of  the  13th.  A  portion  of  the  divi- 
sions which  had  been  previously  threatening  the  southern  entrance 
to  the  city,  hastened  to  join  in  the  attack,  and  the  fortress  was 
stormed.  About  a  thousand  prisoners  were  taken,  and  the  fugitives 
were  driven  tumultuouslv  within  the  walls  of  the  c\V\  Notwith- 
standing  the  rapid  concentration  of  troojis  at  the  assauU„d  quarter, 
General  Quitman  forced  his  way  into  the  city  by  the  gate  of  Belen 
early  in  the  afternoon;  and  the  forces  under  Worth  gained  a  secure 
poi-ition  for  the  night  in  the  buildings  on  the  street  of  San  Cosm*?, 
before  the  gate  of  that  name. 

On  the  morning  of  the  14th,  intelligence  wa.s  received,  by  a  com- 
munication from  the  civil  authorities,  that  the  capital  had  been  evac- 
uated during  the  night  by  the  army  and  the  ofliccrs  of  govcriHuent. 
Promptly  rejecting  all  proposals  for  capitulation,  General  Scott  im- 
mediately proceeded  to  the  military  occujiatioti  of  the  city.  Grcul 
dilRculty  was  at  first  experienced  in  subduing  the  cnnaiUe  of  the 
capital,  who  for  two  days  continued  to  fire  upon  the  Americans  from 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MEXICO. 


207 


places  of  concealment.  A  great  number  of  infamous  wretclies,  who 
had  been  turned  loose  from  the  prisons  on  the  night  of  the  evacuation, 
were  the  principal  actors  in  this  murderous  work. 

Of  the  whole  force  with  which  General  Scott  left  Puebla,  amounting 
to  less  than  eleven  thousand  men,  the  number  of  those  killed  in  battle 
before  the  complete  occupation  of  the  capital  is  set  down  at  three 
hundred  and  eighty-three,  and  the  entire  loss,  in  killed,  wounded, 
and  missing,  at  two  thousand  seven  hundred  and  three. 

General  Quitman  was  appointed  governor  of  the  city,  and  the 
commander-in-chief  engaged  with  great  energy,  though  with  pru- 
dence and  moderation,  in  the  necessary  labour  of  confirming  or 
establishing  some  system  of  law  f;  id  order.  Santa  Anna,  having 
summoned  a  congress  to  meet  at  Quer^taro,  resigned  the  presidency 
to  the  chief  justice  Peiia-y-Pena,  and  with  a  strong  body  of  cavalry 
pushed  on  to  Puebla  to  fall  upon  the  garrison  in  occupation  of  that 
city.  He  was  there  joined  by  General  Eea,  with  some  three  thou- 
sand additional  troops.  The  little  band  of  the  besieged  sustained 
their  position  with  wonderful  firmness  and  success  until  relieved 
by  the  arrival  of  General  Lane,  with  fresh  forces  from  Vera  Cruz. 

This  officer  gained  a  complete  victory  over  each  division  of  the 
Mexican  army,  the  first,  under  Santa  Anna,  who  had  marched  east- 
ward from  Puebla  to  oppose  his  advance,  and  the  second  under  Ilea, 
who  had  retreated  from  Puebla,  and  was  in  occupation  of  Atlixco. 
These  were  the  last  important  engagements  of  the  war.  The  work 
of  reducing  or  disbanding  the  bodies  of  banditti  who  still  maintained 
a  guerilla  warfare  was  successfully  accomplished. 

In  the  month  of  November  a  congress  was  assembled,  but  such 
was  the  animosity  of  the  factions  represented,  that  no  important 
action  was  taken.  Anaya  was  chosen  president  until  the  next 
meeting  of  congress,  which  was  to  take  place  in  the  ensuing  January. 
After  the  close  of  the  session,  the  president,  through  his  predecessor 
Peiia-y-Pena,  now  acting  as  his  minister,  opened  communication  with 
the  American  commissioner  in  regard  to  the  arrangement  of  a  treaty. 
Although  he  had  already  received  notice  from  the  United  States' 
government  of  his  recall,  Mr.  Trist  judged  it  expedient  to  iicgotiiite 
while  opportunity  offered. 

At  the  January  session  of  congress,  as  there  was  not  a  sufficient 
numVicr  of'nicnibcrs  to  form  a  quorum,  there  could  bo  no  election, 
and  I'dla-y-lVfia,  according  to  a  conptitutional  provision,  ansuiucd 
the  vacant  presidency  as  chief  justice.     Commissioners  having  been 


1 

i  I 


I  iS  HI 


U     I 


•    i 


208 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


appointed  by  the  Mexican  government,  a  niocting  was  arranged  with 
the  United  States'  envoy,  and  on  the  2d  of  February,  1848,  a  treaty 
was  signed  at  the  town  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  three  miles  to  the 
northward  of  the  city  of  Mexico. 

By  the  provisions  of  this  important  treaty,  which,  with  little  alter- 
ation, was  a})proved  and  ratified  by  the  United  States'  senate  in  the 
month  of  March  ensuing,  the  disputed  territory  between  the  Nueces 
and  llio  Grande  was  relinquished  by  Mexico,  and  the  whole  of 
Upper  California  and  New  >rexico  was  ceded  to  the  United  States. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  exhausted  coffers  of  the  conquered  nation 
were  to  be  replenished  by  the  payment  of  fifteen  millions  of  dollars 
as  the  jirice  of  "^'oded  territory;  Mexican  liabilities  for  the  private 
claims  of  American  citizens  were  to  be  assumed  to  the  amount  of 
three  millions  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars;  and  the  faith 
of  the  United  Statco  was  jjledged  to  protect  the  northern  Arexican 
frontier  from  Indian  invasion.  On  the  last  of  May  the  ratification 
of  this  treaty  by  the  Mexican  congress  left  the  belligerent  nations  at 
peace,  and  the  United  States'  troops  were  witlulrawn  from  the  country. 
Perhaps  in  no  instance  in  the  history  of  the  world  has  a  victorious 
invading  army  remained  so  long  in  occupation  of  conquered  territory 
without  proving  a  burden  to  the  inhabitants.  Throughout  the 
campaign  the  provisions  for  the  army  were  mostly  paid  for  at  fair 
j)rices,  and  the  only  contributions  drawn  from  the  resources  of  the 
defeated  nation,  NS'ith  the  exception  of  some  very  moderate  imposi- 
tions, to  meet  particular  exigencies,  were  derived  from  duties  upon 
goods  landed  at  the  sea-ports  in  our  jjosscssion.  These  duties  v.rri', 
moreover,  en  an  average,  less  in  am(/unt  than  those  formerly  lcvio(l 
by  the  Mexivjan  customs. 

Tlie  ex-presid(.iit  Santa  Anna  had,  upon  his  own  ap])licuti()ii,  pre- 
viously received  his  passports,  and  permission  from  the  Mexican 
authorities  and  the  American  commander  to  leave  the  country,  lie 
sailed  for  Jamaica  on  the  oth  of  the  preceding  month  of  April. 
Goacjal  llenc!-a  wa:-  .soon  after  elected  i)resident  of  the  repuolie. 


i' 


an 


*»!N  '■'''1  n 


THE   CONQUEST  AND  HISTOBY   OF  MEXICO.  209 


U.  Xi,  i    I    Jj  I\     AAV. 

SUMMARY  OP  NAVAL  OPERATIONS. — COLONEL  lEARNET'S  PRO- 
CEEDINGS  IN   NEW   MEXICO.  —  EVENTS    IN    CALIFORNIA. — 
UNION  OF   COLONEL   FREMONT  WITH   COMMODORE  STOCK- 
TON.—  KEARNEY'S  ARRIVAL  AT  SAN  DIEGO. — CAMPAIGN 
OF    THE    COMBINED    FORCES. — DISPUTES    BETWEEN 
THE   AMERICAN   COMMANDERS. COLONEL    DONI- 
PHAN'S  SERVICES. — MEXICO,   S»NCE  THE   CON- 
CLUSION OF  PEACE  With  THE  UNITED  STATES. 
—  RETURN  OF  SANTA  ANNA.  —  DIFFICULTIES 
RELATING  TO  THE  MESILLA  VALLEY. 

Having  now  followed  out  the  more  important  events  of  the  Mexi- 
can campaign  to  the  close  of  the  war,  we  recur  briefly  to  the  military 
operations  in  the  more  remote  provinces.  The  field  of  action  was  so 
extensive,  and  .-,  >  sparsely  populated,  that  the  adventures  of  ihe  little 
detachments  of  American  troops  by  which  those  operations  were 
performed,  although  replete  with  interest,  had  for  the  most  part  too 
little  bearing  upon  the  grand  result  to  require  minute  detail. 

Upon  the  coast  our  navy  had  not  been  idle:  besides  its  share  ir\ 
the  reduction  of  the  important  stronghold  at  Vera  Cruz,  its  inde- 
pendent operation  resulted  in  the  seizure  of  every  port  upon  the 
Gulf  of  suflicient  importance  to  justify  retention,  and,  in  the  Pacific, 
by  a  strict  blockade,  trade  was  cut  off  with  those  not  in  our  pos.ses- 
sion.  To  the  unfortunate  conflict  of  claims,  upon  the  occupation  of 
California  by  the  naval  and  military  forces  of  the  United  States, 
depending  upon  martial  technicalities  and  la  the  discussion  of  which 
such  infinite  confusion  has  arisen,  we  can  barely  allude. 

As  early  as  June,  1846,  Colonel  Kearney,  to  whom  was  first 
assigned  the  dity  of  invading  New  Mexico  and  California,  left  Fort 
Leavenworth,  with  sixteen  hundred  men,  en  route  for  Santa  Fe. 
He  gained  po  session  of  the  capital  of  New  Mexico  without  resist- 
ance, and  ha^  ing  recruited  his  force  by  the  collection  of  a  consider- 
able body  of  emigrants,  commenced  his  march  through  the  western 
wilderness.  Receiving  intelligence  while  on  the  road  that  he  had 
been  anticipated  in  his  intended  military  operations,  he  ordered  the 


V/%T     TTT  _ 


•tA 

-X'X 


'  I 


M 


210 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


return  of  the  principal  portion  of  his  command,  iind  puflliod  on  with 
a  small  mounted  company. 

That  hardy  pioneer  and  gallant  officer,  Captain  (since  Colonel)  J. 
C.  Fremont,  was  the  first  active  agent  in  the  reduction  of  California. 
Tn  conformity  with  private  orders  from  gov^rnmci.t,  roccived  in 
May,  1846,  he  hastened  from  Oregon  for  the  Sacramento  valley. 
The  American  settlers  in  that  region  eagerly  lent  their  assistance  to 
the  overthrow  of  Mexican  authority.  Few  iis  were  their  numbers, 
this  portion  of  the  community  made  open  declaration  of  iiidepeiid- 
encc  of  Mexico,  early  in  July,  and  just  before  the  reception  of  the 
news  of  the  opening  campaign  in  Mexico.  The  revolutionary  char- 
acter of  the  movement  was  at  once  abandoned,  and  the  insurgents 
gladly  devoted  themselves  to  the  cause  of  their  parent-country. 

The  ports  of  San  Francisco  and  Monicroy  having  been  occupied 
by  the  naval  forces  of  the  United  States,  under  command  of  Com- 
modore Stockton,  Fremont  joined  his  forces  with  tho.so  of  that  officer 
for  the  purpose  of  an  attack  on  Los  Angelos.  The  Mexican  troops, 
under  Castro,  abandoned  the  city,  which  was  occupied  without  a 
struggle,  on  the  18th  of  August.  In  the  following  month,  General 
Castro,  with  recruited  forces,  regained  jjossession. 

General  Kearney,  (he  had  been  raised  to  this  rank  on  receiving 
his  last  commission,)  with  his  little  band,  after  a  wearisome  and  dan- 
gerous march,  reached  San  Diego  towards  the  middle  of  December, 
having  lost  thirty-one  men  in  killed  and  wounded  at  San  Pascu;il, 
where  his  progress  was  opposed  by  a  mounted  force  of  the  enemy. 
The  command  would  probably  have  been  entirely  cut  olf  but  for 
relief  sent  out  from  San  Diego. 

General  Kearney  and  Commodore  St  )ckton,  after  nome  discussion 
as  to  their  several  powers  and  approj)iiate  position  ui  command, 
joined  forces,  and  took  up  their  line  of  march  northward.  At  the 
banks  of  the  river  San  Gabriel  they  encountered  and  defeated  the 
Mexicans  under  Florcs.  That  commander  ralli^'d  his  forces,  and 
made  a  second  stand  at  the  levl  jirairie  of  the  Mesa.  A  second  tinio 
compelled  to  retreat,  he  prooeediii  to  tlie  j)lain  of  Couenga  to  oppose 
the  advance  of  Fremont,  A  parley  was  held  between  the  respective 
commanders,  and  the  Mexican  general  linally  agreed  upon  a  cessa- 
tion of  hostilities.  Una  troops  were  to  deliver  up  their  arms,  and 
during  the  continnanco  of  tlic  war,  to  submit  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
United  States.  The  OLfUpatinn  of  Los  Angelos  was  resumed,  and 
California  remained  subject  to  the  American  government.     Colonel 


this 


''kiii 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  MKXICO. 


211 


Fremont,  liaving  been  appointed  governor  by  Commodore  Stockton, 
became  entangled  in  tho  controversy  between  that  officer  and  Gen- 
eral Kearney  relative  to  their  res2)ectivo.  powers  and  duties  in  tlio 
occupation  and  government  of  tho  conquered  territory.  Ilia  long 
and  wearisome  trial,  during  the  winter  of  1847-8,  "on  charges  of 
mntiny,  disobedience,  and  conduct  to  the  prejudice  of  good  order 
and  military  discipline,"  notwithstanding  its  unfavourable  result, 
appears  to  have  left  no  stain  upon  hia  character,  nor  to  ha  'e  at  all 
diminished  his  deserved  popularity. 

At  New  Mexico,  subsequent  to  the  departure  of  General  Kearney, 
one  of  the  first  objects  occompliahed  was  the  reduction  of  tho  Navaho 
Indians,  who  had  assumed  a  hostile  attitude.  This  service  was  per- 
formed by  Colonel  Doniphan,  in  command  of  a  body  of  mounted 
Missourians.  With  this  force  he  afterwards  made  his  way  to  Chi- 
huahua, and  having  forcibly  taken  possession  of  the  country,  contin- 
ued his  route  to  the  Rio  Grande.  This  march  has  been  not  inaptly 
compared,  from  its  exhibition  of  endurance,  and  the  skill  and  pru- 
dence with  which  it  was  conducted,  to  the  famous  "Retreat  of  tho 
Ten  Thousand." 

The  command  of  the  forces  remaining  in  Now  Mexico  was  at  this 
period  committed  to  Colonel  Price,  upon  whose  energy  and  courage 
the  preservation  of  the  province  was  soon  to  depend.  A  formidable 
insurrection  broke  out  on  the  19th  of  January,  1847,  afler  the 
departure  of  Doniphan,  which  was  not  quelled  without  great  sacrifice 
of  life. 

The  foregoing  outline  i  the  principal  events  connected  with  the 
war  between  Mexico  a  .1  tlic  United  States,  although  confined  to 
the  leading  incident,  ma^  appear  to  have  occupied  an  undue  share 
of  our  attention,  when  compared  with  the  preceding  sketch  of  colo- 
nial history.  The  importance  of  the  results  of  this  war  already  wit- 
nessed, and  tho  still  more  momentous  changes  to  which  it  may 
probably  load,  justify  this  apparent  disproportion.  Who  can  over- 
estimate the  influence  upon  the  destinies  of  the  natio'isJi  of  either 
hemisphere  consequent  upon  the  extension  of  the  jurisdiction  of  tho 
United  States  over  the  recent  wilderness  of  California?  or  who  can 
offer  a  probable  conjecture  as  to  how  long  tho  iinrnen?i<!  resources  of 
this  now  state  might  have  remained  undeveloped  under  the  weak 
government  of  Mexico,  occupied  only  by  a  seattered  population, 
born  and  bred  in  national  apathy  and  want  of  enterprise? 

Since  the  conclusion  of  peace  with  the  United  States  the  political 


.{i.i^^'iEi 


It 

lif 


212 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


history  of  the  Mexican  republic  presents  little  of  permanent  interest 
No  stability  of  government  has  been  yet  attained:  a  "Mexican  rev- 
olution "  has  become  a  by- word :  with  crippled  finances,  a  constant 
change  of  rulers,  unceasing  disaffection  among  different  factions  and 
provinces,  and  the  decline  of  every  source  of  national  prosperity, 
unless  by  some  unforeseen  concurrence  of  events  her  prospects  shall 
brighten,  she  must  continue  to  decline  until,  as  a  separate  state, 
blotted  from  the  list  of  nations. 

The  strong  arm,  the  subtle  craft,  and  the  iron  will  of  Santa  Anna, 
have  recently  been  once  more  brought  into  requisition,  to  regulate 
and  guide  the  disturbed  affairs  of  the  republic.  If  the  aame  confi- 
dence could  be  repoaec^  iu  his  good  faith  and  patriotism,  as  in  his 
firmness  and  ability,  no  living  man  were  better  fitted  to  restore  his 
country's  languishing  prosperity.  He  has  commenced  his  administra- 
tion by  prompt  and  decided  measures  for  ensuring  his  own  suprem- 
acy ;  whether  his  foreign  policy,  particularly  in  intercourse  with  the 
United  States,  is  to  be  just  and  conciliatory,  remains  to  be  seen. 

A  new  dispute  has  arisen  upon  a  question  of  boundary  between 
this  country  and  Mexico,  which  threatens  to  breed  further  difficulty, 
unless  the  controversy  be  conducted  in  a  different  spirit  from  that 
at  first  evinced  by  the  governors  of  the  contending  provinces.  The 
tract  in  dispute  is  the  Mesilla  valley,  claimed  by  the  authorities  of 
New  Mexico  to  have  belonged  to  that  province,  and  to  have  been 
consequently  included  in  the  district  ceded  to  the  United  States  at 
the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo,  although  by  an  erroneous  survey 
laid  down  as  part  of  the  territory  of  the  adjoining  Mexican  state. 

The  movements  of  both  parties  may  perhaps  be  considered  rather 
))recipitute,  in  a  matter  which  should  certainly  in  the  first  instance 
be  made  the  subject  of  negotiation  between  the  respective  federal  gov- 
ernments. It  is  to  be  hoped,  however,  that  the  hasty  action  which 
led  to  an  armed  occupation  of  the  valley,  may  not  so  far  blind  the 
minds  of  the  parties  in  interest  as  to  make  that  a  question  of  feeling 
which  should  be  one  of  right  and  policy;  and  that  such  action  muy 
be  taken  in  the  premises  as  shall  avert  the  monstrous  folly  of  an 
a})[>e;d  to  arms. 


; 


1    ^^ 


COIQTJEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


uJuLiiliJtJUiUdli        la 

THE  CAPITAL  OF  THE  ISTHMUS  TRANSFERRED  TO  PANAMA. — 
ACCOUNT   OF  FRANCISCO   PIZARRO. — HIS   CONFEDERATES. 
— HIS   FIRST   VOYAGE    IN   QUEST  OF   PERU. — GRIEVOUS 
LOSS    AND    SUFFERING.  —  HIS    RETURN. — THE     VOY- 
AGE   OF    ALMAORO. — EXTRAORDINARY   CONTRACT 
OF  PIZARRO,   ALMAGRO,  AND  LUQUE. 

The  daring  enterprise  and  indefatigable  exertions  of  Balboa, 
stimulated  by  the  rumour  of  golden  realms  on  the  Pacific,  south  of 
the  Isthmus,  had  laid  open  the  way  to  those  regions  of  conjectured 
wealth  and  splendor.  The  grand  schemes  of  adventure  and  ambition 
which  had  seemed  to  perish  with  him,  were,  after  a  brief  interval, 
revived  by  one  fully  his  equal  in  genius,  courage,  and  endurance, 
and,  if  possible,  his  superior  in  fierceness,  in  rapine,  and  in  cruelty. 

Francisco  Pizarru,  one  of  the  most  renowned  and  infamous  of 
mankind,  was  born  at  Truxillo,  in  Estramadura,  about  the  year  1471. 
He  was  the  illegitimate  son  of  Gonz<alo  Pizarro,  an  officer  of  the 
famous  Cordova,  and  at  his  birth,  hy  a  piece  of  inhuman  abandon- 
ment, was  exposed  at  the  church-door  and  left  as  a  foundling.  Nay, 
it  is  said  that  for  some  days  the  only  nourishment  he  received  was 
derived  from  a  sow,  which,  in  default  of  a  more  fitting  nurse,  was 
provided  for  his  sustenance.  lie  was  bred  up  to  the  calling  of  a 
swineherd,  and  never  learned  to  read  or  write.  It  is  from  souls  of 
high  natural  genius,  degraded  in  youth  by  ignorance,  privation,  and 
unnatural  ignominy,  that  great  criminals  are  most  aptly  made;  and 
the  candid  observer  will  bestow  a  portion  of  his  pity  on  the  forlorn 
circumstances  of  Pizarro'.s  vouth.  and  a  Dortion  of  his  indiirnatioa 


R'l 


214 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


on  tlie  authors  of  those  circumstances,  which  in  great  degree  made 
him  what  he  was. 

At  an  early  age  he  ran  away  from  his  ignoble  charge,  and  mado 
his  way  to  the  New  World.  Only  occasional  glimpses  are  caught 
of  his  career,  but  they  are  such  as  reveal  sternness,  endurance,  and 
talent  for  command.  We  have  already  mentioned  that  he  accompa 
nied  Balboa  and  afterwards  Morales  on  their  memorable  expeditions 
to  the  South  Sea,  and  that,  at  the  command  of  Pedrarias,  he  had 
arrested  the  former,  and  brought  him  to  Ada  for  execution.  Soon 
after,  the  governor  transferred  his  capital  from  Darien,  on  the 
Atlantic  coast,  to  a  site  on  the  Pacil'c,  called  Panama,  some  distance 
eastward  from  the  present  city  of  that  name.  In  1521,  an  expedition 
had  been  dispatched  to  the  southward,  in  quest  of  the  region  of  gold, 
but  it  proceeded  only  a  little  way  along  the  coast.  The  splendid 
achicvetnents  and  wonderful  successes  of  Cortes,  however,  soon  gave 
a  fresh  impulse  to  adventure,  and  a  few  daring  men,  in  the  capital 
of  the  Lsthmu.s,  resolved  on  reviving  the  neglectcil  enterprise  of 
Balboa. 

Of  these  the  foremost  was  Pizarro,  who,  after  a  life  of  great  vicis- 
situdes, now,  at  the  age  of  fifty,  was  cultivating  a  little  estate  near 
Panama;  Diego  de  Almagro,  also  a  foundling  and  an  old  soldier  of 
fortune,  was  another;  and  Hernando  de  Luque,  a  priest,  of  an  enter- 
prising spirit,  and  provided  with  funds  by  a  wealthy  friend,  brotiglit 
his  important  aid  to  the  ])roject.  These  three  obscure  and  uninflu- 
ential  individuals,  after  several  conferences,  resolved  on  prosecuting 
an  enterprise,  the  magnitude  of  which,  contrasted  with  the  slender 
means  of  its  projectors,  sufliciently  evinces  their  boldness  and  energy 
of  purpose.  This  was  nothing  less  than  the  discovery  and  conquest 
of  that  golden  empire,  the  existence  of  which  had  first  be(!n  indicated 
in  the  vague  rumours  of  the  Indians  of  Comagre,  and  which  had 
afterwards  occasionally  been  confirmed  by  authority  no  more  exact 
or  reliable.  Two  small  vessels  were  procured,  in  one  of  which 
Pizarro,  with  a  hundred  men,  in  the  middle  of  November,  152-4,  set 
Boil,  leaving  Almagro  to  follow  in  the  other,  as  soon  as  it  could  be 
made  ready. 

Crossing  the  Gulf  of  Sati  Miguel,  and  following  the  coast,  he  first 
entered  the  river  Biru,  and  made  a  disastrous  attempt  at  exploring 
the  marshes,  of  wliich  the  country  appeared  entirely  to  consist. 
Foiled  in  this  endeavour,  he  again  stood  southward,  during  the  rainy 
ucasun,  through  u  succession  of  gales  and  thunder-storms,  which  well 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  UISTORY  OF  PERU. 


216 


nigh  sent  his  frail  bark  to  the  bottom.  The  shore  was  still  found 
to  consist  of  vast  swamps  and  intricate  forests.  His  men,  worn  out 
and  'u^lf- famished,  were  clamorous  for  return,  but  their  commander 
refused  to  relinquish  his  project..  Landing,  with  a  portion  of  his 
force,  he  dispatched  the  vessel,  with  the  remainder,  homeward,  to 
procure  supplies. 

Half  of  his  command  soon  perished  from  hunger  and  exposure, 
and  the  rest  were  saved  only  by  a  scanty-  supply  of  maize,  obtained 
from  an  Indian  village  in  the  interior.  The  vessel,  after  a  voyage 
rendered  terrible  by  similar  sufferings,  at  last  returned  with  supplies, 
and  took  off  the  half-starved  wretches  who  still  survived.  At  their 
next  landing,  Pizarro  discovered  an  Indian  village,  deserted  by  the 
affrighted  inhabitants,  in  which  he  found  considerable  gold,  and  saw 
the  unmistakable  evidences  of  cannibalism.  At  another  point,  far- 
ther on,  which  he  called  Panta  Quemada,  he  took  possession  of  a 
fortified  village,  deserted,  as  usual,  at  the  approach  of  the  strangers, 
intending  to  dispatch  the  vessel  to  Panama  for  repairs.  But  a  furi- 
ous attack  -f  tV««  Indians,  in  which  five  of  the  Spaniards  were  killed 
and  a  great  ■  T  r  wounded,  rendered  the  plan  too  hazardous.  All, 
therefore,  \  .  .  ^n  board,  and  set  sail  homeward — Pizarro,  with  most 
of  his  company,  disembarking  a  little  before  reaching  the  town. 

Almagro,  with  the  other  vessel,  and  with  sixty  or  seventy  addi- 
tional recruits,  after  great  delays,  had  set  forth,  before  this  return, 
and  coasting  southward,  had  touched  at  various  points^,  where,  by  the 
notching  of  trees,  he  perceived  the  late  visits  of  his  consort.  At 
Quemada  he  also  had  a  fight  with  the  Indians,  in  which  he  lost  an 
eye;  but  had  pushed  on,  making  several  landings,  and  seizing  con- 
siderable gold,  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  San  Juan,  four  degrees 
north  latitude.  The  appearances  of  civilization  increased,  and  fresh 
accounts  df  the  empire  in  the  south  continually  reached  him.  Finding 
nothing  of  his  partner,  however,  he  turned  northward,  and  rejoined 
him  at  his  quarters  near  Panama.  Exultant  in  the  prospect  of  real- 
izing their  ambitious  project,  each  made  fresh  pledges  to  prosecute 
the  adventure  to  an  end. 

The  countetjance  of  Pedrarias  had  been  secured,  at  the  outset,  by 
admitting  him  to  a  share  of  the  anticipated  profits;  but,  though  the 
scheme  now  seemed  more  feasible  than  before,  he  obstinately  refused 
to  fontriVnite  any  thing  in  aid  of  the  enterprise;  and,  greedy  for 
prrsitit  gain,  relinquished  his  share  in  the  future  wealth  of  Peru, 
on  receiving  a  bond,  with  security,  for  the  payment  of  a  thousand 


'  ^n 


•Jr . 


I 


T 


216 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OP  HISTORY. 


pesos  (twelve  thousand  dollars).  This  incubus  removed,  "the  three 
confederates  met  at  Panama,  and  with  much  form  and  solemnity 
executed  that  memorable  contract  for  the  spoliation  and  division  of 
the  unknown  realms  and  treasures  of  the  south.  *In  the  Name  of 
the  most  Holy  Trinity,'  comraenc<  >  this  singular  document,  'Father 
Son,  and  Holy  host,  three  distin  persons,  and  ore  only  true  God 
and  of  the  mosi,  Holy  Virgin,  our  Lady,  we  form  this  partnership.' 
Neither  Pizarro  nor  Almagro  could  write,  and  their  names,  therefore, 
were  subscribed  by  the  hands  of  the  witnesses;  while,  the  more 
strongly  to  bind  tLem  to  its  observance,  they  took  oath  upon  a 
missal,  tracing  a  cross  thereon,  in  the  name  of  God  and  the  Holy 
Evangelists.  To  make  all  sure,  the  worthy  Father  Luque  then 
administered  the  sacrament,  giving  each  a  portion  of  the  consecrated 
wafer,  and  taking  the  same  himself.  So  impressive  was  the  scene 
that  the  bystanders  were  melted  to  tears;  but  all  these  ghodtly  pre- 
cautions for  amity  and  fair  play  eventually  proved  to  be  of  no  more 
value  than  is  usual  where  solemn  vows  and  lengthy  protestations  are 
used  to  cover  lurking  rivalry  and  distrust.    (March  10th,  1526.)"* 


SECOND  70YAOE  OF  PIZARRO  AND  ALMAGRO. — THEIR  SUPPER- 

IN08.  —  FRESH  DISCOVERIES.  —  RETURN  OF  ALM.^ORO.  —  THE 

ISLAND  OF  OALLO.  —  RESOLUTION  OF  PIZARRO  AND  TWELVE 

OTHi    «. — THEIR  DISCOVERT  OF  PERU. — ITS  TREASURES. — 

Vlli  HRO  REPAIRS  TO  SPAIN. — GRANT  OF  THE  CROWN. 

—  IfETURN  OF  PIZ.^HRO  WITH  HIS  BROTHERS. — THE 

THIRD  EXPEDITION  TO  PERU. — BATTLE  AT  PUNA. 

With  the  funds  furnished  by  Luque,  two  vessels  were  now  fitted 
out  anew,  and  efforts  were  made  to  enlist  adventurers  for  the  enter- 
prise. Some  difficulty  was  experienced,  on  account  of  the  fatal  result 
of  the  former  expedition;  but,  singular  to  state,  nearly  all  the  sur- 
vivors again  enlisted,  resolved  to  see  it  to  an  end,  and  enough  more 
were  at  last  enrolled  to  make  up  the  number  of  an  hundred  and 

•  Didcovcrcre,  dtc,  of  America. 


>^i-: '  -  '    .    < 


V-.  !■■       * 


1 


^ 


ij 


% 


'4i 


F  It  .1  XC  I  s  c  u     r  I  /..I  K  H  o 
THE     coNqi'cnoR     or     riRf. 

B()IIN    AT    TRi;XII.IX),   1471;     SEIZED     THE     PEIUVIAN     INCA.    NOVE.MBKK    Ifi.    l.TO 
AR»\!*»INATED    JliNE    20,    Mtl 


i 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


217 


Bixty.  With  this  insignificant  force,  supplied  with  a  few  horses  an'1 
gre-arms,  the  two  adventurers,  each  in  his  own  vessel,  again  set  sail 
from  Panama.  Without  touching  ou  the  coast,  they  held  their  way 
to  the  San  Juan,  where,  by  plunder  of  the  native  villages,  they 
obtained  a  considerable  quantity  of  gold.  With  this  spoil  Almagro 
was  dispatched  homeward  to  &V  e  fresh  recruits;  Pizarro,  with  part 
of  his  force,  remained  on  shore;  and  Ruiz,  an  experienced  pilot,  pur- 
sued discovery  southward.  That  voyager  found  the  shores  populous 
and  well  cultivated,  and  gained  fresl  mformation  of  the  wealth  and 
splendour  of  Peru,  where  gold  and  silver,  he  was  told,  were  plenty 
as  wood  in  the  royal  palaces.  Having  crossed  the  line,  and  captured 
from  an  Indian  balsa  two  natives  of  that  kingdom,  to  serve  as  inter- 
preters, he  returned  to  the  encampment. 

Pizarro,  during  his  absence,  in  a  march  through  the  tangled  forests 
of  the  interior,  had  lost  many  of  his  men  from  the  attacks  of  the 
Indians,  and  of  the  alligators  and  serpents,  with  which  the  region 
abounded.  The  survivors  suffered  terribly  from  famine,  and  were 
compelled  to  bury  themselves  to  the  necks  in  sand  to  avoid  the 
insufferable  annoyance  of  the  musquitoes,  Bevived  by  the  return 
of  Ruiz  and  Almagro,  (the  latter  with  eighty  recruits,)  they  again 
got  under  way,  and  after  long  struggling  with  a  succession  of  fright- 
ful tempests,  approached  the  shores  of  Quito.  Here,  at  Tacamez,  a 
sea-port  of  two  thousand  native  houses,  lately  brought  under  sub- 
jection to  the  Jncaa  of  Peru,  they  attempted  a  landing,  but  were 
so  sharply  opposed  by  tjie  natives  as  to  be  compelled  to  rfetreat 
aboard  their  vesiels.  After  a  fierce  debate  between  the  two  Spanish 
captains,  evincing  much  lurking  jealousy  and  hatred,  it  was  agreed 
that  Almagro  should  again  sail  to  Panama  for  reinforcements  and 
supplies,  and  that  Pizarro,  with  a  part  of  the  force,  should  encamp 
on  the  island  of  Gallo. 

The  soldiers,  dreading  starvation  in  this  desolate  scene,  were 
clamorous  in  opposition ;  and,  though  overawed  by  the  sternness  and 
authority  of  their  commander,  contrived  to  send  clandestinely  to 
their  friends  in  Panama,  entreating  rescue  from  their  miserable  sit- 
uation. Accordingly,  De  los  Rios,  the  Jiew  gove.  aor  of  that  prov- 
ince, not  only  refused  any  countenance  or  assistance  to  Almagro, 
but  sent  two  vessels,  under  one  of  his  own  officers,  to  bring  off  the 
malcontents  forcibly  detaiced  on  th*?  obnoxious  island.  Their  arrival 
was  hailed  with  exultation  by  most  of  the  company,  who  had  already 
suflered  much  from  exposure  and  privation :  but  Pizarro,  encouraged 


■J 


218 


TU£  PEOI'LE'S  BOOK   OF  IIISTOKY. 


by  a  letter  from  his  associates  in  Panama,  pledging  speedy  assistance, 
resolved  to  hold  out  to  the  last.  Drawing  a  line  with  his  sword  . 
upon  the  sand,  he  addressed  the  men  in  a  few  words  of  harsh  but 
eloquent  truth.  "Comrades  and  friends,"  he  said,  "this  side  is  that 
of  death,  of  toils,  of  famine,  of  nakedness,  of  storms  and  homeless- 
ness;  the  other  is  that  of  ease:  on  that  lies  Panama  and  its  poverty; 
on  this  Peru  and  its  riches.  Let  each  man  choose  what  becomes  a 
good  Castilian."  Having  uttered  these  memorable  words,  he  stepped 
over  the  line  to  the  southward,  and  was  followed  by  Ruiz  and  twelve 
others — a  number  singularly  grea',  considering  the  lesperation  of 
the  resolve.  A  more  signal  instar.ce  of  hardihood  or  perseverance 
is  hardly  tc  be  found  in  history. 

After  the  departure  of  the  vessels,  t'  a  little  band  of  resolute 
adventurers  who  remained,  passed  on  a  raft  to  the  distant  island  of 
Gorgoiin,  and  there,  for  seven  long  months,  suffering  great  extremi- 
ties, and  supporting  their  spirits  with  frequent  and  regular  religious 
exercises,  watclied  wearily  for  the  expected  sail  of  Almagro.  But 
the  latter  and  his  confederate,  afler  much  delay  and  using  every 
exertion,  could  only  prevail  on  the  governor  to  allow  the  dispatch 
of  a  small  ve.5sel  with  orders  to  bring  off  the  obstinate  adventurers 
who  had  remained.  But  on  its  arrival,  they  joyfully  embarked,  and 
under  the  pilotage  of  Ruiz,  at  once  steered  southward.  Crossing  the. 
line,  at  the  end  of  twenty  days  they  entered  the  Gulf  of  Guayaquil, 
and  belicM  before  them  the  Peruvian  town  of  Tumbez,  baejced  by 
the  Andes,  and  exhibiting  strong  tokens  of  wealth  and  population. 
The  Indians,  in  multitudes,  gathered  on  the  shore  to  behold  the 
siranger  ship,  and  numbers  soon  came  off  in  their  balsas  or  native 
boats,  bearing  offerings  of  fruit  and  several  llamas,  an  animal  before 
unknown  t<j  Europeans. 

Among  these  visitors  was  a  Peruvian  noble,  to  whom  Pizarro,  by 
an  interpreter,  explained  that  he  was  come  to  claim  the  allegiance 
of  the  country  in  belialf  of  his  master,  the  king  of  Spain,  and  to 
rescue  the  people  from  the  perdition  to  which  their  evil  spirits, 
which  they  called  gods,  were  conducting  them.  However  surprised 
at  this  iinpudent  announcement,  the  chief  preserved  an  attitude  of 
discreet  non-comrnittal.  A  Greek  knight,  one  Pedro  de  Candia, 
was  now  sent  ashore,  where  he  was  hospitably  received,  and  soon 
returned  to  astonish  his  companions  by  the  report  of  the  treasures  he 
had  beheld.  The  Temple  of  the  Sun,  to  which  he  had  been  conducted. 
was  covered,  he  said,  with  platea  of  gold  and  silver;  and  in  the  gar* 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  UI8T0KY  OF  PERU. 


219 


dens  of  a  species  of  nunnery,  were  fruits  and  flowers,  exquisitely 
represented  in  the  same  precious  metals.  Overwhelmed  with  joy 
at  these  welcome  tidings,  the  Spaniards  weighed  anchor,  and  stood 
along  the  coast  to  effect  frei.li  discoveries. 

They  were  every  where  treated  with  the  greatest  kindness  and 
attention  by  the  natives,  who,  from  their  fair  complexions  and  bril- 
liant armour,  gave  them  the  name  of  "Children  of  the  Sun" — their 
own  most  veperated  deity.  Fresh  accounts  of  the  great  Inca,  whose 
capital,  resplendent  with  gold,  was  said  to  lie  among  the  mountains, 
and  fresh  evidences  of  wealth  and  civilization,  such  as  stone  houses 
and  well-cultivated  fields,  continually  cheered  the  spirits  of  the 
adventurers,  and  convinced  them  that  they  had  arrived  at  last  at  the 
long-sought  region.  After  cruising  to  the  ninth  degree  of  south  lati- 
tude, they  turned  northward,  and  bore  the  brilliant  tidings  to  Panama. 

Sin^jular  to  state,  the  new  governor,  averse  to  enterprise,  in  the 
face  of  these  splendid  omens  of  success,  absolutely  refused  his  coun- 
tenance to  any  new  expedition,  declaring  that  "he  did  not  mean  to 
depopulate  his  own  province  to  people  New  Lands,  nor  to  cause  the 
death  of  any  more  people  than  had  been  killed  already;  for  a  show 
of  Sheep  (llamas)  Gold,  and  Silver,  which  had  been  brought  home." 
It  was  therefore  resolved  by  the  confederates  that  Pizarro  should  sail 
to  Spain,  and  apply  in  person  to  the  crown  for  assistance  adequate 
to  the  enterprise.  Furnished  with  fifteen  hundred  ducats,  to  aid  his 
suit,  and  bearing  specimens  of  the  productions  of  Peru,  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1528,  he  arrived  at  Toledo,  where  the  emperor  (Charles  V.) 
then  held  his  court. 

Illiterate,  but  eloquent  by  nature,  he  related  his  story,  and  pleaded 
his  cause  with  extraordinary  effect.  The  sovereign,  it  is  said,  was 
moved  to  tears  by  the  recital,  and  his  interest  and  cupidity  were 
powerfully  awakened  by  the  sight  of  the  Peruvian  treasure  and  the 
prospect  of  grasping  the  unimaginable  wealth  of  that  distant  region. 
The  suit  of  Pizarro  was  referred,  with  favourable  recommendation, 
to  the  Council  of  the  Indies;  and  accordingly,  afici  a  year's  delay, 
full  powers  of  discovery  and  conquest  in  a  vast  extent  of  country 
were  granted  to  him,  with  the  offices  of  governor,  captain-general, 
&fi.,  &c.,  over  such  regions  as  he  should  reduce  under  submission  to 
the  crown.  The  complete  authority,  in  effect,  was  vested  in  his 
hands — the  claims  of  Almagro  and  Luque  being  acknowledged 
only  by  slight  appointments.  To  secure  the  possession  of  these 
dignities  and  privileges,  however,  he  was  bound,  within  a  certairi 


L. 


220 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


'  » 


* 


time,  to  provide  two  hundred  and  fifly  men,  and  with  them  to  sail 
for  Panama.  '       ^    "  '  >  *         ';•'  > 

With  all  the  prestige  of  his  new  importance,  the  adventurer  betook 
him  to  his  native  place,  where  many  of  his  townsmen  were  found 
ready  to  embark  in  the  enterprise.  Among  these  were  four  of  his 
brothers,  of  whom  Hernando  alone  w  iis  legitimate,  Gonzalo  and  Juan 
Pizarro  owning  the  same  parents  as  himself,  and  Francisco  de  Alcan- 
tara being  connected  with  him  only  by  the  mother.  ^11  were  men 
of  extraordinary  courage  and  resolution.  The  requisite  funds  were 
obtained  with  difficulty,  and  it  is  said  that  but  for  the  opportune 
assistance  of  Cortes,  with  whom,  as  we  have  seen,  Pizarro  became 
acquainted  at  Palos,  the  scheme  nuglit  have  failed  altogether.  As 
it  was,  he  was  unable  fully  to  complete  his  stipulated  armament; 
and  in  January,  1530,  with  only  a  portion  of  the  required  force, 
hurriedly  put  to  sea,  and  sailed  for  Noinbre  de  Dios. 

Almagro  and  Luque,  who  were  there  eagerly  awaiting  his  arrival, 
were  exceedingly  angered  and  disappointed  at  the  perfidious  conduct 
of  their  confederate;  but  he  promised  solemnly  that  all  the  terms  of 
the  compact  should  be  fulfilled;  and,  a  hollow  truce  being  thus 
patched  up,  all  betook  themselves  to  Panama. 

Very  few  recruits  could  be  obtained  at  that  place,  and  early  in 
January,  1581,  with  an  hundred  and  eighty-three  men  and  twenty- 
seven  horses,  in  three  vessels,  leaving  Almagro  to  gather  reinforce- 
mcnt.s,  Pizarro  set  forth  to  effect  the  Conquest  of  Peru.  After  a 
voyage  of  thirteen  days,  he  disembarked  at  the  Bay  of  St.  Matthew, 
a  little  north  of  the  equator,  and  with  most  of  his  men,  marclied 
southward  along  the  shore,*  accompanied  by  the  vessels.  At  an 
Indian  village  in  Coaque,  which  they  took  by  surprise,  these  ma- 
rauders got  a  great  booty  in  gold  and  emeralds,  part  of  which  Pizarro 
sent  back  to  Panama,  as  an  allurement  for  recruits.  The  march 
proved  excessively  severe — the  sun,  in  these  low  latitudes,  striking 
with  terrible  power  on  the  soldiers  cased  in  steel  armour,  or  half- 
smothered  in  their  thick  doublets  of  quilted  cotton.  Several  per- 
ished on  the  way,  and  the  remainder  were  much  relieved  by  the 
arrival  of  a  vessel  from  the  Isthmus,  containing  supplies  and  a  small 
rfiinforcement. 

The  invading  force  finally  reached  the  Gulf  of  Guayaquil,  and 
passed  over  to  the  isle  of  Puna,  opposite  Tumbez,  where  it  encf  "nped. 
The  people  of  that  city  came  over  in  a  friendly  way,  to  visit  them, 
but  the  islanders,  provoked  by  an  act  of  hostility,  gathering,  to  the 


THE   CONQUEST  AND   HISTOKY    OF  PEBU. 


»% 


I   I 


number  of  several  thousands,  attacked  the  Spanish  quarters.  After 
tt  hurdly-contested  flght,  they  were  repulsed  by  the  cavalry  and  fire- 
iirniH — a  result  attributed  by  the  piety  of  the  Christians  to  the  prow- 
ess of  the  archangel  Michael,  who  (it  is  recorded)  was  seen,  with  the 
nngelic  hosts,  fighting  in  the  air  against  a  multitude  of  demons, 
whose  defeat  was  simultaneous  with  that  of  the  Indians.  In  honour 
of  this  miraculous  assistance,  Pizarro  vowed  that  the  first  city  he 
should  found  should  receive  the  name  of  his  heavenly  protector — a 
vow  subsequently  fulfilled  at  the  erection  of  San  Miguel.  But, 
despite  their  losses,  the  islanders  still  maintained  a  hostile  attitude, 
and  the  Spaniards  hailed  with  joy  the  arrival  of  a  hundred  men, 
under  Hernando  de  Sotc,  the  future  invader  of  Florida  and  discov- 
erer of  the  Mississippi.  Thus  strengthened,  Pizarro  resolved  to  cross 
to  the  mainland,  and  proceed  at  once  to  his  gigantic  undertaking — 
the  Conquest  of  Peru. 


Li   (Lui   Jtat  ■  iL     Ju    Jj   tLb      X    iL    JL  • 

THE  ABORIGINES  OP  PERU. — THE  RULE  OP  THE  1NCA8. — RE- 
PLECTIONS — AGRICULTURAL  LABOURS. — LLAMAS. — IMMENSE 
PUBLIC   WORKS. — WARLIKE  OPERATIONS.  —  PUBLIC    RE- 
CORDS.— RELIGION. — TRADITIONS. — EARLY  HISTORY. 
—  CONDITION  OP  THE  RACE  IN  MODERN  TIMES. 


The  history  of  no  half-civilized  race  is  more  replete  with  interest 
than  that  of  the  ancient  Peruvians.  Their  advance  in  the  arts  and 
in  the  refinements  of  social  life  was  fully  equal  to  that  of  the  Mexi- 
cans; but  wide  dissimilarities  existed  between  the  two  nations,  and 
no  traces  of  a  common  origin,  or  indeed,  of  any  communication 
between  them,  have  been  discovered.  The  picture  of  Peruvian  life 
given  by  the  old  writers  contains  less  that  is  repulsive,  and 
evinces  a  greater  degree  of  general  prosperity  and  content,  than 
that  presented  of  the  condition  of  Mexico  under  the  Montezumas.  It 
is  true  that  by  the  singular  nature  of  the  government  of  the  Incas, 
no  rconi  was  left  for  individual  enterprise,  or  for  the  development 
of  individual  superiority;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  utmost  care 
for  the  gcucral  welfare  animated  every  department.    Agrarian  laws 


.'■■  si",  Si*  t' 


222 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OT  HISTORY. 


liftvc  never  been  maintained  for  any  length  of  time,  except  in  Peru 
where  a  yearly  division  took  place  of  the  portion  of  the  soil  not 
reserved  for  the  uae  of  the  church  and  the  government. 

The  perfection  and  exactitude  of  this  extraordinary  system,  con- 
sidering the  variety  of  races  and  the  va.st  extent  of  territory  subject 
to  the  Peruvian  monarchs,  are  almost  incrcilMe.  It  was  unques- 
tionably "  the  mo.st  perfct  specimen  of  a  'pau  .al  despotism'  which 
hiw-t  ever  been  presented  to  the  eye  of  the  world.  The  inca  was 
absolute,  and  all  the  inhabitanta  of  his  vast  dominions  did  not  pos- 
Bcas  the  shadow  of  a  right  or  law  apart  from  his  sovereign  will.  Nor 
was  this  portentous  assertion  of  authority  a  mere  instrument  of  terror 
produced  only  on  state  occasions,  to  overawe  the  refractory  or  min- 
ister to  the  caprice  of  the  sovereign.  It  formed  an  intofrpal  niul 
engrossing  portion  of  the  life  of  every  man,  woman,  and  child 
throughout  the  Peruvian  domains.  Industry,  food,  clothing,  shelter 
domestic  relations,  amusements,  every  thing,  were  undc  ••  the  direct 
supervision  of  government.  No  one  was  allowed  to  be  idle.  No 
one  was  permitted  to  suffer  from  want.  Education,  marriage,  social 
intercourse,  were  all  under  strict  regulation.  lu  such  a  place  the 
subject  must  reside;  such  and  .such  work,  at  stated  times,  he  must 
perform;  at  such  an  age  he  must  take  a  certain  wife;  and  he  must 
bring  up  his  children  in  a  fixed  and  certain  manner.  'The  impera- 
tive spirit  of  despotism  would  not  allow  them  to  bo  happy  or  miser- 
able in  any  way  but  that  establi.shed  by  law.  The  power  of  free 
agency — the  inestimable  and  in-born  right  of  every  human  being — 
was  annihilated  in  Peru.' 

"Despotism,  says  a  profound,  but  popular  writer,  may  be  borne 
but  the  intermeddling  of  a  royal  busy-body  is  too  much  for  human 
nature.  This  rule,  accurately  enough  applied  to  the  sprightlier  peo- 
pie  of  Europe,  may  have  its  exceptions;  for,  strange  to  any,  atiiong 
the  Peruvians,  this  apparently  vexatious  system  .soems  to  have  irorkcd 
well.  It  was  indeed  remarkably  accordant  with  the  gentle,  industri- 
ous, and  cu.stom-loving  disposition  of  the  races  to  which  it  was 
applied,  and  few  more  pleasing  pictures  of  rural  quiet  and  tranquil- 
lity exi.st,  than  those  which*  are  given  of  this  people  under  its  prim- 
itive government."* 

The  curaca  or  governor  of  each  di.strict  exerci.sed  a  constant  per- 
sonal supervision  over  his  peo[»lc,  making  periodical  reports  to  his 
superiors  of  the  most  minute  details  of  the  labours  accomplished,  and 
*  DiwiiveriTs,  &.c.,  of  .Aiiicricu. 


! 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


228 


of  tlio  agriculturul  productions.  The  assiduous  cultivatioti  of  the 
noil  was  pursuod  in  the  face  of  natural  obHtaclcH  gnmtt^r  than  have 
been  elacwhore  successfully  overcome.  Tlio  plains  were  barren  from 
want  of  rain,  which  never  falls  there  in  sulUoient  quantity  to  avail 
for  the  irrigation  of  the  fieldn;  and,  to  render  them  fruitful,  tho 
niountain  torrents  were  turned  from  their  courses,  conducted  through 
massive  aqueducts  of  hewn  stone,  and  distributed  by  innumerable 
channels  through  the  cultivable  territory.  The  steep  and  almost 
inaccessible  sides  of  the  mountains  were  cut  into  terraces,  and  teenuid 
with  luxurious  crops  of  Indian  corn,  potatoes,  quinoa,  and  other 
productions  of  the  country.  Districts  naturally  barren  were  enriched 
by  the  use  of  guano  from  the  coast  rind  from  tho  neighbouring  islands. 

The  government  monopoly  extended  not  only  to  the  soil,  but  to 
the  flocks  of  llamas  from  which  the  clothing  of  nearly  the  whole 
nation  was  derived,  and  which  supplied  the  principal  portion  of  ani- 
mal food  used  in  Peru.  These  diminutive  animals,  the  only  beasts 
of  burden  known  in  the  country,  were  mostly  turned  loose  among 
the  mountains,  where  they  wandered  in  immense  herds,  under  tho 
care  of  their  keepers  and  secure  from  molestation,  until  the  season 
for  shearing.  At  appointed  periods  they  were  driven  in,  and,  alter 
tlie  fleece  was  secured,  and  a  portion  of  the  males  reserved  for  food, 
were  again  set  at  lil)crty.  The  fleece  was  carefully  distributed  among 
the  people,  to  be  manufactured  into  clothing  by  the  women,  and  the 
entire  disposition  of  this  valuable  article  was  impartially  but  severely 
regulated  by  government  officials. 

Care  was  taken  to  reserve  from  the  annual  products  of  tho  public 
lands  and  flocks,  a  certain  ]>ortion  for  future  emergencit's,  which  was 
stored  in  extensive  d<5potB  upon  the  great  roads.  Tnnnenso  quanti- 
ties of  provision  were  accumulated  in  this  manner,  and  conveuient 
halting-places  and  abundant  supplies  were  furnished  ".;  ^hc  royal 
armies  on  their  march  through  the  country.  Every  t!;'ii!g  was  so 
perfectly  systematized,  that  no  man'felt  ()p[»rt'.-scd  or  burdened  by  the 
heavy  demands  on  his  tiine  and  labour  made  by  the  authorities. 

A  largo  body  of  labourers,  relieved  at  stated  intervals  by  fresh 
recruits,  were  constantly  employed  upon  the  public  roads  and  build- 
ings; and  the  ruins  yet  remaining  sufliciently  attest  the  efficiency 
of  their  operations.  It  is  doubtful  whether  such  immense  undertak- 
ings were  ever  elsewhere  accomplished  with  no  greater  aid  fnjm 
machinery  and  beasts  of  burden.  The  whole  kingdom  was  tra- 
versed by  broad  and  convenient  highways,  in  the  construction  of 


224 


THE   TKOl'LE'S   BOOK   OF   UlSTOKY. 


which  the  most  disheartening  obstacles  were  successfully  overcome. 
The  main  road  from  Quito  to  Cuzco,  and  Lhence  to  the  southern 
portions  of  £he  kingdom,  was  led  along  the  mountain  ridges  for  a 
distance  estimated  at  not  much  less  than  two  thousand  miles.  It 
was  massively  built  of  stone,  or  hewn  out  from  the  native  rock,  and, 
although  only  about  twenty  feet  broad,  afforded  a  smooth  and  easy 
passage  between  the  great  cities,  for  foot-passengers  or  trains  of 
loaded  llamas.  The  highway  second  in  importance  was  conducted 
through  the  level  plains,  parallel  with  the  sea-coast,  and  consisted  of 
an  embankment,  or  causeway,  lined,  where  the  soil  was  fruitful,  with 
ornamental  trees  and  shrubs. 

All  these  public  works,  aa  well  as  the  massive  palaces  and  religious 
temples,  of  hewn  stone,  seem  the  more  marvellous  when  we  consider 
that  the  materials  were  wrought  without  any  iron  instrument,  as  the 
Peruvians,  like  the  Mexicans,  had  no  harder  tools  than  those  manu- 
factured from  an  niloy  of  copper  and  tin. 

It  may  be  readily  perceived  what  immense  facilities  were  afforded 
for  military  operations  by  these  roads,  and  by  the  granaries  which 
were  built  and  stored  at  regular  intervals  throughout  the  routes.  The 
government  pu  sued  a  warlike  policy  towards  neighbouring  nations, 
and  the  successes  of  the  Peruvian  armies  resulted  in  vast  additions 
to  the  empire.  When  a  province  was  subdued,  the  first  steps  taken 
were  to  introduce  the  national  worship  of  the  Sun,  to  establish  the 
laws  of  Peru,  giving  to  the  conquered  people  equal  privileges  with 
their  conquerors,  and  to  introduce  colonies  of  Peruvians  into  the 
new  country,  by  whose  association  and  example  the  natives  might 
the  sooner  perceive  the  advantages  of  quietly  submitting  to  the  des- 
potic but  paternal  care  of  the  iiica.  The  native  nobles  and  governors 
were  often  continued  in  office,  and  conciliated  by  favours  and  hon- 
ours, and  a  decent  respect  was  paid  to  the  religious  belief  and  pop- 
ular usjigcs  of  the  newly-acquired  territory. 

In  the  conduct  of  the  complicated  machinery  of  government,  reg- 
ularity and  precision  were  maintained  by  a  species  of  record,  crude 
indeed,  as  compared  with  a  written  language,  but  ingenious,  and 
well  adapted  to  secure  accuracy  in  numerical  computations.  Tliis 
was  the  "quipu,"  '.'hich  consisted  simply  of  a  series  of  variously 
coloured  threads,  attached  at  regular  intervals  to  a  cord.  Knots  tied 
in  these  threads,  according  to  a  certain  prescribed  order,  supplied  all 
the  requisite  means  for  registering  uic  population  of  the  country,  the 
births,  deatl)8,  and  marriages,  the  public  resources,  the  revenue,  and 


[It 


THE   CONQUEST   AND  HISTORY   OF  PERU. 


226 


even  a  clironological  history  of  the  empire.  None,  of  course,  except 
those  versed  in  the  art,  to  whom  the  keeping  of  the  quipus  were 
entrusted,  could  expound  their  mysteries,  and  the  annals  so  quaintly 
recorded  mostly  perished  with  these  officials. 

The  Peruvian  religion  was  in  many  respects  as  wild  and  fanciful 
as  that  of  any  unenlightened  nation,  and  in  the  mode  of  worship 
every  variety  of  imposing  and  ceremonious  pageant  was  resorted  to, 
to  preserve  a  due  impression  of  its  importance.  As  one-third  of  all 
cultivable  lands  was  sequestered  for  the  use  of  the  church,  an 
ample  revenue  was  furnished  for  the  construction  and  adornment 
of  the  most  magnificent  temples  and  the  support  of  a  numerous 
priesthood.  Chief  among  this  body,  which  consisted  entirely  of 
descendants  from  the  royal  stock,  was  the  inca  himself,  who  offi- 
ciated personally  on  great  and  solemn  occasions.  The  principal 
objects  of  adoration  were  the  sun,  and  the  subordinate  moon  and 
stars;  but  we  are  told  that  besides  these  visiblo  emblems  of  divinity, 
and  superior  to  them  all,  the  God  Pachacamac  was  adored  as  the 
invisible  creator  of  all  things.  To  this  deity  a  single  temple,  of 
ancient  date,  standing  in  a  valley  near  the  present  city  of  Lima,  was 
devoted ;  but  for  various  reasons  it  has  been  supposed  that  this  branch 
of  the  religion  of  the  incas  and  their  subjects  was  but  the  remnant  of 
a  theology  more  ancient  than  the  date  of  their  conquests.  Early 
writers  give  minute  and  tedious  descriptions  of  Peruvian  religious 
rites  and  ceremonies,  details  affording  no  interest,  now  that  their 
meaning  and  origin  are  no  longer  to  be  ascertained. 

The  national  traditions  concerning  the  commencement  and  pro- 
gress of  civilization  in  Peru  throw  little  light  upon  modern  specula- 
tion. The  mythological  progenitor  of  the  race  of  the  incas,  Manco 
Capao,  a  child  of  the  Sun,  taking  to  wife  his  sister  Mama  Oello 
lluaco,  was  said  to  have  first  instituted  the  customs  of  civilization, 
and  taught  the  arts  of  agriculture  and  manufactures  to  the  barbarous 
inhabitants  of  the  vale  of  Cuzco.  In  order  to  preserve  the  royal 
stock  as  distinct  as  possible  from  that  of  the  commonalty,  the  inca, 
in  later  times,  always  married  his  sister,  although  this  unnatural 
union  was  strictly  prohibited  between  those  of  inferior  rank. 

The  accounts  of  the  early  princes  arc  so  vague  and  uncertain  that 
we  commence  our  history  of  the  empire  with  the  reign  of  Topa  Tnca 
Yupanqui,  father  to  Iluayna  Capno,  who  filled  tlie  throne  at  the 
time  of  the  first  Spanish  discoveries  upon  the  western  coast  of  South 
America.  Under  these  two  warlike  monarchs  the  Peruvian  territory 
Vol.  III.— 15 


^  I 


It* 


i     r 


226 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


was  extended  from  the  country  of  the  unconquerable  Araucanians, 
in  southern  Chili,  to  the  northern  confines  of  modern  Equador.  The 
latter  province  was  subdued  by  lluayna  Capac,  who  established 
himself  at  Quito,  its  ancient  capital,  and  formed  a  connection  with 
the  daughter  of  its  last  native  prince.  He  died  about  a  year  after 
the  first  expedition  of  Pizarro,  and  by  the  regular  laws  of  descent 
his  whole  dominions  should  have  passed  to  his  legitimate  son,  Huas- 
car.  Atahuallpa,  his  son  by  the  princess  of  Quito,  possessed,  how- 
ever, so  strong  a  hold  upon  his  affections,  that  he  had  determined  to 
bestow  upon  him  that  portion  which  had  belonged  to  his  maternal 
ancestors. 

The  two  princes  commenced  their  reigns  with  favourable  auspices 
for  long-continued  peace,  but,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years,  mutual 
jealousies  and  encroachments  involved  the  country  in  a  fierce  civil 
war.  Atahuallpa  marched  for  the  ancient  capital  of  the  incas,  deter- 
mined, if  possible,  to  dethrone  his  brother,  and  constitute  himself  solo 
monarch  of  the  Peruvian  empire.  At  Ambato,  near  the  great  moun- 
tain Chimborazo,  only  sixty  miles  from  Quito,  he  was  encountered 
by  the  forces  of  Huascar,  and  a  severe  engagement  ensued.  Atahu 
allpa  was  completely  successful,  and  having  annihilated  his  oppo- 
nents, pressed  on  to  the  southward,  wreaking  terrible  vengeance  on 
the  revolted  province  of  Canaris. 

Another  great  and  decisive  battle  was  fought  in  the  vicinity  of 
Cuzcv;,  and  the  unfortunate  Huascar  found  himself  stripped  of  his 
kingdom,  and  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  his  rival.  Tho  suece&sful 
invader  established  himself  in  the  village  of  Caxamalca,  the  modern 
Caxamarca,  where  he  still  held  his  court  when  Piznrro  landed  on  the 
IVruvian  coast.  Although  he  had  no  open  opponent  to  his  .sdietnes 
of  aggrandizement,  the  whole  country  was  nece.ssarily  in  an  unsettled 
state,  and  he  was  in  no  condition  to  make  a  successful  defence  against 
the  handful  of  fierce  and  warlike  adventurers  who  came  to  lay  waste 
his  territory,  and  deprive  him  of  power,  liberty,  and  life. 

The  remainder  of  the  native  history  of  Peru  is  but  a  mournful  detail 
of  the  effects  of  foreig"  otipression,  cruelty,  and  avarice.  On  several 
occasions  the  miserable  aborigines,  reduced  and  degraded  as  tlicv 
were  by  ages  of  cruelty  and  oppression,  rose  against  their  enslavers, 
and  fought  for  their  lilHTty  with  all  the  courage  of  desperation.  As 
late  as  the  year  1781,  one  Jose  Gabriel  Condorcanqui,  a  lineal 
descendant  of  the  old  line  of  incas,  heailed  a  formidable  insurrection 
against  the  Spanish  authorities.     The  numbers  of  both  jaocs  who 


THE  CONQUEST   AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


227 


perished  in  this  civil  war,  before  the  reduction  of  the  aborigines,  has 
been  set  down  at  over  one  hundred  thousand.  The  leader,  historic- 
ally known  as  Tupac  Amaru  the  Second,  with  several  of  his  family, 
was  finally  taken  prisoner,  and  was  publicly  quartered  at  Cuzco. 


LiiAJtiiiii     iv. 

PIZARRO    LANDS  AT    TUMBEZ. — MARCHES    SOUTHWARD,    AND 

FOUNDS  SAN  MIGUEL. — PROCEEDS  IN  QUEST  OF  THE  INCA. — 

CROSSES  THE  ANDES. — FRIENDLY  MESSAGES.  —  ARRIVAL 

AT  CAXAMALCA. — INTERVIEW  WITH  ATAHUALLPA. — 

HIS  RESERVE. — STRENGTH  OP  THE  PERUVIANS. 

On  landing  his  forces  at  Tumbez,  Pizarro  was  surprised  to  find 
the  town,  lately  so  splendid  and  populous,  deserted  and  demolished. 
A  party  of  Indians  gave  him  a  hostile  reception,  but  his  hopes  were 
reanimated,  it  is  said,  by  a  note,  written,  perhaps,  by  two  Spaniards 
whom  he  had  left  on  a  former  voyage,  and  purporting  as  follows: 
"Know,  whoever  you  may  be,  that  may  chance  to  set  foot  in  this 
country,  that  it  contains  more  gold  and  silver  than  there  is  iron  in 
Biscay." 

Early  in  May,  1532,  with  the  principal  part  of  his  force,  he  set 
forth  for  the  interior,  marching  through  a  thick ly-settled  country, 
and  obtaining  abundant  supplies  from  the  natives,  whom  he  concili- 
ated by  gentle  treatment.  Formal  proclamation,  at  every  village, 
was  made  in  behalf  of  the  political  and  ecclesiastical  supremacy  of 
the  emperor  and  the  pope;  and  the  natives,  though  not  comprehend- 
ing a  word  of  the  mystical  ceremony,  their  silence  being  held  for 
consent,  were  duly  enrolled  by  a  notary  as  subjects  of  Spain.  Thirty 
leagues  south  of  Tumbez,  he  founded  a  city,  named,  in  fulfilment 
of  his  vow,  San  Miguel,  and,  enslaving  the  natives  of  the  adjoining 
region,  distributed  them  among  the  Spanish  colonists.  The  reason 
as.signed  was,  "that  it  would  redound  to  the  service  of  God,  as  well 
as  of  the  natives  themselves — *  *  *  that  they  might  sus- 
tain the  settlers,  and  that  the  Christians  might  indoctrinate  them  in 
Qur  Holy  Faith."  Considerable  gold  which  had  been  acquired  by 
tlic  troops,  Pizarro  persuaded  them  to  send  back  to  Panama,  as  a 


'" 


?; 


r 


228 


TUE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


incans  of  enticing  fresh  volunteers  to  share  the  arduous  enterprise 
iu  which  they  were  engaged. 

In  this  nitirch  he  had  learned  much  of  the  state  of  the  country, 
and  the  reports  of  its  wealth  had  been  confirmed  beyond  all  reason- 
able doubt.  He  now  resolved  to  set  forth  on  a  visit  to  the  Inca 
Atahuallpa,  probably  with  no  definite  ideas  of  immediate  conquest, 
but  from  eager  desire  to  behold  the  extraordinary  state  and  riches, 
with  glimpses  of  which  his  imagination  had  been  so  long  inflamed. 
Leaving  a  small  garrison  at  San  Miguel,  on  the  2'ith  of  September, 
with  the  remainder  of  his  little  army,  he  set  forth  in  quest  of  the 
distant  and  unknown  capital  of  the  Peruvian  monarch.  After  a 
marcli  of  five  days  through  a  most  beautiful  country,  cultivated  with 
the  perfection  of  agricultural  skill,  he  halted,  and  with  politic  bold- 
ness, invited  all  who  were  averse  to  the  expedition  to  return.  Only 
nine  accepted  the  offer,  and  the  rest,  by  declining  it,  were  irrevoca- 
bly pledged  to  prosecute  the  adventure.  "With  an  Imndred  and  sixty- 
eight  men,  a  third  of  whom  were  cavalry,  ho  continued  his  march 
to  the  mountains. 

At  a  place  called  Zaran,  he  halted  for  a  week,  and  dispatched  De 
Soto  to  a  Peruvian  military  post,  further  on.  That  oflicer,  on  his 
return,  was  accompanied  by  an  emissary  from  the  inca  himself,  bear- 
ing presents  lor  the  Spanish  general,  and  a  friendly  message,  inviting 
him  to  court.  15y  the  aid  of  interpreters  much  civility  was  exchanged, 
and  a  courteous  answer  was  dispatched  to  the  Peruvian  court.  A 
few  days'  march  brought  the  Spaniards  to  the  foot  of  the  Andes, 
behind  which,  at  the  town  of  Caxamalca,  they  were  informed,  Ata- 
huallpa, with  his  army,  lay  encamped. 

An  easy  and  level  road,  leading  to  Cuzco,  the  Indian  capital,  con- 
trasted with  the  terrors  of  the  ascent,  and  the  dangers  which  might 
lie  beyond,  caused  many  of  the  soldiers  to  waver  in  their  resolution; 
but  Pizarro,  with  his  customary  eloquence,  urged  them  on,  eiitreat- 
ing  that  they  wiild  not  expose  themselves  to  the  contempt  of  the 
inca  by  drawin,;?  back,  jmd  assuring  them  that  the  Lord  would  ever 
be  finuid  fighting  on  their  side.  The  march  up  the  mountain  fM'ved 
toilsome  and  dangerous  in  the  extreme,  the  cavaliers  being  conipciled 
to  lead  their  hor.-.'s  along  frightful  ledges  and  precipices,  where  a 
single  mis-step  would  prove  destruction;  and  where  a  few  resolute 
men  might  have  withstood  their  march  altogether.  They  also  suffered 
greatly  from  cold.  At  night  tliey  lodged  in  a  strong  fortress  of  stone, 
and  at  da^  break  resumed  t!ic  march.     A  friendly  embas.sy  from  the 


^.. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


229 


inca,  bearing  presents,  met  them  on  the  way,  and  ajler  a  toilsome 
march  of  seven  days,  descending  with  difficulty  the  rugged  sierra, 
they  came  m  view  of  Caxamalcp. 

That  city,  inhabited  by  a  refined  and  industrious  people,  about  ten 
thousand  in  number,  lay  in  a  beautiful  valley,  among  lofty  mount- 
ains; and  at  the  hot  baths,  a  league  distant,  was  encamped  the  im- 
perial army,  covering  the  hill-sides,  for  miles,  with  its  tents  of  snowy 
cotton.  A  feeling  of  dismay  seized  the  little  force  of  audacious 
visitors.  "So  many  did  they  appear,"  says  one  of  them,  "that  for 
certain  we  were  filled  with  dread,  for  we  had  never  dreamed  that 
the  Indians  could  have  held  so  proud  a  statj,  nor  so  many  tents, 
pitched  with  such  skill,  the  like  whereof  was  never  before  seen  in 
the  Indies,  and  caused  in  all  the  Spaniards  great  fear  and  confusion : 
howbeit,  it  would  never  have  done  to  show  it,  or  in  the  least  to 
recoil;  for  if  \ny  sign  of  weakness  had  appeared,  the  very  Indians 
we  had  with  us  would  have  killed  ".s:  so,  with  a  sprightly  bearing, 
after  having  well  surveyed  the  aforesaid  town  and  tents,  we  de- 
scended into  the  valley  below  and  encered  Caxamalca."  (November  • 
15th,  1532.) 

The  town  was  deserted,  and  Pizarro,  taking  up  his  quarters  in  the 
great  square,  dispatched  his  brother  Ilornando,  with  De  Soto  and  a 
few  of  the  cavalry,  to  the  camp  of  the  Indians.  In  the  court  of  a 
light  summer-house,  at  the  baths,  they  found  the  inca,  seated  on  a 
low  cushion,  surrounded  by  his  nobles.  His  dress  was  simple,  but 
he  wore  on  his  forehead  the  crimson  borla  or  fringe,  the  emblom  of 
imperial  dignity.  Ilis  demeanour  was  that  of  entire  calmness  and 
even  apathy.  Without  dismounting,  the  Spanish  emissary,  -by  a 
native  interpreter  named  Felipillo,  discharged  his  errand,  which 
included  accounts  of  the  greatness  of  the  Spanish  monarch,  profFors 
of  instruction  in  the  Faith,  and  the  reqiiest  of  a  royal  visit  to  the 
Spanish  camp.  One  of  the  nobles  answered,  "it  is  well;"  bui  Ata- 
huallpa  preserved  an  appearance  of  entire  apathy  and  iinconscious- 
ness  till  Hernando  entreated  a  personal  reply,  when,  with  a  slight 
smile,  he  turned  his  head,  and  answered,  "Tell  your  captain  I  am 
keeping  a  fast,  which  will  last  till  to-r^^row  morning;  I  will  then 
visit  him,  with  certain  of  my  nobles.  Meanwhile,  let  him  occupy 
the  public  buildings  on  the  square,  and  none  other,  till  i  ..ome."  As 
he  spoke,  he  looked  with  some  interest  on  the  war-horse  of  De  Soto, 
and  that  cavalier,  giving  his  steed  the  rein,  dashed  swiftly  across  the 
plain,  displaying  the  power  and  speed  of  his  animal.     Returning  in 


230 


THE   PEOPLE'li    BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


fall  carer,  ho  jretned  the  impatit/it  charger  short  upon  hia  haunches, 
so  near  IL>  icraon  of  the  inca,  that  the  foam  from  his  mouth  lighted 
on  the  imp^.'  ''al  garments;  but  Atahuallpa  still  preserved  a  demefvn. 
our  of  culm  and  aliiost  unconscious  apathy.  Keturning,  the  einisdrt. 
ries  dismayed  their  companion.;  with  an  account  of  the  po\vr  urd 
state  of  the  inca,  and  the  formid.ible  number  of  hisarmjr — ai;  alur;  ;. 
ing  report,  fully  confirn  d  at  night  by  the  sight  of  innurnorablc 
watch-fires  in  the  camp  of  the  Pi^i'uvians. 


CHAPTER   ?. 

CKCET,   AND   AT  TsACTOUS  SCHEME  OF  PIZARRO. lirE  VISIT  0/ 

THE   lyrx.-   .^LiiNE  WITH   T!'E   FltlAR  VALVERBE. — TER- 
RIBLE    MASSATiif     ;F    THi^    PERUVIANS. — SEIZURE    OF 
THE     INCA.—  ii    S     lORKITUDE.  —  PLUNDER     OF     THE 
'JITY  AND  r.\i.:'.  —  £X  .'RAORDINARY  OFFER  OF  K.\N- 
80y,  —  THE  MIRD.^R  OF  HUASCAR. 

"WuEruKii  Pizarro  had  undertaken  his  march  with  any  uefinite 
purpose  of  violence  or  attempted  conquest,  it  is  not  easy  to  conjec- 
ture; but,  hifr  followers  once  placed  in  a  position  whence  there  could 
l.e  no  retreat,  he  i esolved  on  n  course  the  most  audaciou.3,  perfidious, 
:i'.  1  perhaps  hazardous  tiiat  couM  be  conceived.  This  was  nothing 
it.-:,  than  to  follow  the  daring  example  of  Cortes  in  that  conquest 
which  doubtless  seemed  a  model  to  oil  adventurers  of  his  day — to 
seize  the  per.son  of  the  inca,  and  thus  at  onci  to  secure  the  obedi- 
ence of  liis  realms.  lie  neglected  nothing  which  could  animate  tlie 
courage,  rapacity  and  faiKiticisrii  of  his  soldiers;  and  the  chaplains 
of  the  expedition,  well  knowing  the  fearfully  hazardous  natu  .  .  ," 
the  attem])t,  sj;ent  the  whole  night  in  "discipline"  (self-flagellation,  it 
would  seem),  in  weeping,  luid  in  prayer  "that  God  would  award  due 
success  to  his  most  sacred  service,  the  exaltation  of  the  faith,  and  the 
salvation  of  suui  a  number  of  souls!" 

Pizarro  then  made  his  force  "a  riglit  Christian  harangue.'  and  all 
raided  their  voices  in  the  solemn  chant,  "Arise,  oh  Lord.  .  •  judge 
tliy  cause!"     "One  might  have  supposed  them,"  says  M?  'cott, 

"a  company  of  martyr  ,    bout  to  lay  down  their  li    ;i  ir-   \  ..ace  of 


THE   CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


231 


their  faith,  instead  of  a  licentious  band  of  adventurers,  meditating 
one  of  the  most  atrocious  acts  of  perfidy  on  the  record  of  history  I" 
These  pious  preliminaries  adjusted,  Pizarro  posted  them,  sword  in 
hfind,  in  the  numerous  halls  and  passages  opening  into  the  square, 
with  orders,  at  the  discharge  of  a  musket,  to  rush  forth,  and  make 
an  indiscriminate  slaughter  of  the  Peruvian  nobles. 

All  day  these  fierce  and  cruel  men,  in  a  fever  of  impatience,  re- 
mained on  their  arms — for  the  inca  did  not  take  up  his  march  till 
noon,  and  the  cumbrous  pomp  of  the  imperial  progress  delayed  his 
journey  so  long  that  he  proposed  to  defer  his  entrance  until  morning. 
But  an  artful  message  from  Pizarro  induced  him  to  proceed,  and, 
surrounded  by  an  immense  crowd  of  nobles,  resplendent  with  golden 
ornaments,  he  approached  the  city.  At  the  gate-way,  as  a  token  of 
good  faith,  he  ordered  all  his  attendants  to  lay  aside  their  arms. 

"A  little  before  sunset,  he  entered  the  great  square,  borne  on  a 
splendid  throne  of  massive  gold,  overshadowed  with  the  plumes  of 
the  gay  birds  of  the  tropics.  Before  him  went  four  hundred  menials, 
clearing  the  way,  and  singing  their  national  chants,  'which  in  our 
ears,'  says  one  of  the  Spaniards,  'sounded  like  the  Songs  of  Hell.' 
From  his  lofty  position,  the  inca  calmly  surveyed  the  multitude  of 
his  followers,  who  formed  around  him  in  courtly  order.  When 
about  six  thousand  of  them  had  entered  the  square,  he  looked  around 
inquiringly,  and  said, '  Where  are  the  strangers?'  At  this  word  came 
forward  the  reverend  Father  Valverde,  Pizarro's  chaplain,  with  a 
crucifix  in  one  hand  and  a  breviary  in  the  other,  and  made  a  long 
harangue,  commencing  with  the  Creation,  and  thence  proceeding 
through  the  fall  of  Adam,  the  incarnation,  crucifixion,  and  resurrec- 
tion, the  appointment  of  St.  Peter  as  God's  vicar  on  earth,  the  apos- 
tolical succession  of  Popes,  the  bull  in  favor  of  Castile,  and  ending 
logically  with  a  fij-mal  demand  that  the  inca  should  submit  his  spir- 
itual guidance  to  the  Pope,  and  his  temporal  allegiance  to  the  king 
of  Spain.  All  this  was  duly  translated  by  the  interpreter,  Felipillo, 
who,  by  wr.y  of  expounding  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  explained 
to  his  royal  auditor  that  'The  Christians  had  Three  Gods  and  One 
God,  making  Four  in  all.' 

"'To  the  whieli  words,'  r.  -•.s  a  bystander,  'and  much  besides  tliat 
the  Reveren.'.  r.iiiicr  saul,  he  renrMncil  silent  without  returning  a 
r  [>ly.  ^^r  ihen  said  he  w<"iul  see  what  God  had  commanried,  as 
he  was  i  Id,  in  the  book;  so  ho  took  tho  book  and  opened  it,  aiiit 
looked  it  over,  examining  the  form  and  anangement.'     lie  next  lu.'ld 


iumge 

Hi^ 

mm 

SflnJUi 

WKfUK 

r 

I'" 


F 
III' 


!■ 


1* 
1^ 


232 


TI!£   PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIISTOBY. 


it  to  his  ear,  and  saying  contemptuously  'this  tells  me  nothing,'  flung 
it  angrily  away.  Then,  with  a  countenance  flushed  with  emotion, 
he  made  answer  to  such  portions  of  the  address  as  he  had  been  able 
to  comprehend.  He  would  be  no  man's  tributary,  he  said ;  and  as 
for  the  great  priest  beyond  the  waters,  he  must  be  mad  to  talk  of 
giving  away  countries  which  be  had  never  seen.  Nor  would  he 
change  his  faith.  The  God  of  the  Christians,  according  to  their  own 
account,  had  been  slain  by  his  own  creatures,  but  the  eternal  Sun,  the 
great  Deity  of  Peru,  still  shone  on  his  glorious  and  beneficent  course 
througli  the  firmament.  Excited  by  the  insults  he  had  received,  he 
declared  that  the  Spaniards  should  render  a  strict  account  of  their 
doings  in  his  territories.  The  discomfited  friar,  seeing  the  ill  suc- 
cess of  his  eloquence,  picked  up  the  book,  bowed  his  head,  and  has- 
tened to  Pizarro.  'Did  you  see  what  passed?'  he  cried — 'while  we 
waste  tin^o  in  fooleries  and  arguments  with  this  dog,  full  of  pride, 
the  square  is  filling  with  Indians.  Set  on  them  at  once!  I  absolve 
you.'  The  fatal  gun,  the  signal  of  slaughter,  was  fired,  and  the 
Spaniards,  horse  and  foot,  rushed  furiously  from  their  lurking-places. 
Taken  by  surprise,  utterly  unarmed,  and  bewildered  by  the  unwonted 
discharge  of  artillery  and  fire-arms,  the  unhappy  victims  were  slaugh- 
tered without  the  slightest  means  of  resistance.  The  nobles,  with 
affecting  devotion,  flung  themselves  before  their  master,  to  receive 
the  blows  of  the  murderers,  and,  by  clinging  to  the  legs  of  their 
horsea,  and  striving  to  pull  the  riders  from  their  saddles,  for  some 
time  kept  back  the  press  from  his  person.  But  they  died  by  hun- 
dreds around  him,  and  Pizarro,  darting  through  the  throng,  seized 
his  captive  with  his  own  hand.  A  most  wanton  and  merciless 
slaughter  was  still  kept  up,  and  did  not  cease  till  the  shades  of  iiglit 
blinded  the  assa&sins,  and 

'  The  hand  which  slew  till  it  could  slay  no  more 
Wus  glued  to  the  aword>hilt  with  Indian  gore.' 

Within  less  than  an  hour,  four  thousand  of  the  unarmed  and  harm- 
loss  multitude  that  had  so  gaily  entered  the  square,  with  their  ?ongs 
and  thoir  holiday  attire,  lay  murdered  on  the  pavement.  A  more 
atrocious  r  id  unprovoked  massacre  is  not  recorded  in  history.  Not 
one  of  the  Spaniards  had  received  an  injury."* 

Atahuallpa,  with  true  Indian  stoicism,  despite  this  tremendous 
reverse  and  all  its  appalling  concomitants,  maintained  his  accustomed 

♦  Piucoverere,  &o.,  of  America. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HIS'l  Y  OF    PERU. 


288 


serenity.  As  he  sat  at  supper  with  the  victor,  he  remarked  simply, 
"It  is  the  fortune  of  war,"  but  no  expression  of  emotion  escaped  his 
atatue-like  lips,  or  betrayed  itself  in  the  usual  stern  graVity  of  his 
face.  The  next  day,  the  prisoners,  of  whom  a  great  number  had 
been  taken,  after  having  been  compelled  to  cleanse  the  square  and 
bury  the  corpses  of  the  victims,  were  mostly  dismissed.  Numbers, 
however,  were  retained  by  the  Spaniards  as  attendants;  and  the 
army  of  the  inca,  terrified  at  the  seizure  of  their  sovereign  and  the 
massacre  of  the  nobles,  gradually  melted  away  and  dispersed  without 
any  attempt  to  avenge  the  outrage.  The  plunder  of  the  city  and  the 
camp  was  exceedingly  valuable,  and  it  i^  said  that  in  the  royal  mag- 
azines the  quantity  of  fabrics  delicately  wrought  in  wool  was  suf- 
ficient to  freight  several  ships.  .[.,{..;    <^;  'i-'riH/l  (iii  ,i    !    .:«fVrr    vi) 

Tlio  captive  inca  espied  a  hope  in  the  greediness  for  gold  with 
which  he  saw  the  invaders  posse?  I;  and  he  offered,  if  Pizarro 
would  release  him,  to  cover  the  llooi  of  the  apartment  in  which  they 
stood  with  gold.  Seeing  the  indecision  of  his  captor,  he  redoubled 
his.  offers,  and  btanding  on  tiptoe,  pledged  himself  to  fill  it  with  the 
precious  metal  as  high  as  he  could  reach.  Pizarro,  hoping,  at  least, 
to  secure  a  portion  of  this  magnificent  bribe,  at  once  accepted  the 
proposition,  an  1  a  line,  nine  feet  from  the  floor,  was  drawn  around 
'.e  room,  w.'ii  '>  »sa8  twenty-two  feet  long  and  seventeen  broad.    A 

aller  apan  nt  was  also  to  be  twice  filled  with  silver,  and  a  solemn 
cont'^act,  assuring  the  inca  his  liberty  on  payment  of  this  unheard- 
of)  )ra,  was  drawn  up.  He  issued  orders,  forthwith,  to  his  officers, 
that  the  gold  n  ornaments  from  the  palaces  and  temples  throughout 
the  empire,         ild  be  sent  to  Caxamalca.  ,  >  r, 

The  ill-fatt.  Hua-car,  who  was  confined  in  a  city  not  far  distant, 
now,  by  alluring  offers,  endeavoured  to  secure  the  favour  of  the  Span- 
iards, hoping  by  their  means  to  regain  the  throne ;  but  Atahuallpa, 
with  a  dark  and  cruel  policy,  availing  himself  of  the  power  yet 
remaining  in,  his  hands,  avenged  the  attempted  intrigue  by  an  order 
for  his  secret  execution.  He  was  privately  drowned  in  the  river 
Andamarca,  and  his  brother,  acting  the  part  almost  invariably 
selected  by  the  royal  authors  of  such  deeds,  affected  deep  sorrow, 
and  laid  all  the  blame  on  his  officers. 


« 


284 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIIBTOBY. 


i  ••-,. 


xiiirxjLJn    vi. 

THE  BIPKDITION  TO  PACHACAMAC. — THE  SPOILS  OP  CUZCO  — 

DIVISION  OF  IMMENSE  TREASUKE.  —  THE  ATROCIOUS  TRUL, 

SENTENCE,  AND  MURDER  OP  ATAHUALLPA.  —  HYPOCRISY 

OP  PIZARRO  — REPLEITIONS.—   PATE  OP  THE  MURDERERS. 

Hernando  Pizarro,  with  a  small  force,  waa  now  dispatched  to 
Pachacamac,  the  Peruvian  Mecca,  a  hundred  leagues  distant.  On 
the  way  he  was  struck  with  admiration  at  the  massive  excellence  of 
the  road,  the  innumerable  herds  of  llamas  which  pastured  in  the 
hills,  and  the  frequent  signs  of  industry  and  dense  population.  The 
treasures  of  the  temple,  however,  had  been  removed  by  the  pries i.-t, 
and  the  only  satisfaction  he  had  was  in  the  destruction  of  their  most 
venerated  idol.  lie  also  ("in  default  of  a  better,"  he  modestly  re- 
marks) made  a  sermon  to  the  people,  and  taught  them  the  sign  of 
the  cross,  as  a  charm  against  the  devil,  lie  then  marched  to  Xauxa, 
where  a  portion  of  the  Peruvian  army  lay  encamped,  under  Challcu- 
chima,  the  inca's  chief  general;  and  that  commander,  to  secure 
whose  person  the  Spaniard  was  anxious,  willingly  accompanied  him 
to  Caxamalca.  In  spite  of  Indian  stouism,  the  old  chief  was  affected 
to  tears  at  the  sight  of  his  imprisoned  master.  "Would  that  I  had 
been  here!"  he  exclaimed;  "this  would  not  then  have  happened." 

Great  quantities  of  gold,  in  plates  or  wrought  into  ornaments,  con- 
tinued to  pour  into  the  Spanish  camp;  and,  at  the  instance  of 
Atahuallpa,  Pizarro  dispatched  a  small  embassy  to  Cuzco,  to  secure 
the  treasures  of  that  ancient  capital  of  the  incas.  Borne  on  the 
shoulders  of  the  natives  for  six  hundred  miles,  these  emissaries, 
apparently  a  coarse  and  brutal-minded  set,  arrived  at  the  city,  where 
they  were  bewildered  with  the  splendour  of  its  treasures — though  not 
to  such  an  extent  aa  to  preclude  their  instant  seizure  of  all  that 
appeared  portable.  Seven  hundred  plates  of  gold  were  stripped 
from  the  Temple  of  the  Sun  alone,  and  with  eight  hundred  Indians, 
laden  with  gold  and  silver,  they  took  their  way  back  to  the  Spanish 
camp.  Meanwhile,  Almagro,  with  a  reinforcement  of  two  hundred 
men,  had  arrived  at  San  Miguel,  and  on  learning  the  startling  events 
which  had  transpired,  ha-stened,  with  his  comniuud,  to  the  camp  at 
Caxamalca.     (February,  1583). 


^m 


THE  CONQUEST  AMD  HISTORY  OF  PEBU. 


285 


Though  the  room  wns  not  quite  filled  with  gold  to  the  8tij)ulatcd 
height,  Pizarro  thought  it  prudent  to  satisfy  the  cluinoura  of  his  mon 
by  an  immediate  division  of  the  spoil.  A  fifth  part  wns  set  asido 
for  the  Spanish  sovereign,  and  with  it  were  selected  some  splendid 
spccimenB  of  Peruvian  art — among  them  beautiful  imitations  of  tho 
Indian  corn,  the  ear  being  composed  of  yellow  gold,  and  the  husk, 
partly  open,  with  tho  beard  or  tassel,  of  silver.  With  these,  Her- 
nando was  to  proceed  to  Spain,  and  fortify  the  interests  uf  his  family 
at  court  The  remainder  of  the  treasure  was  mostly  melted  into 
bars,  and  its  value,  on  estimation,  proved  equal  to  that  of  fifteen 
millions  of  dollars  at  the  present  day — being  the  greatest  amount  of 
plunder,  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  marauders,  ever  acquired 
by  military  violence.  The  share  of  Pizarro,  including  the  throne  of 
the  inca,  formed  of  solid  gold,  amounted  to  nearly  a  million.  The 
cavalry  received  an  hundred  thousand  each,  and  the  infantry  half 
that  amount.  Despite  of  ancient  agreement  and  present  remon- 
strance, Almagro  and  his  people  were  not  permitted  to  receive  more 
than  a  nominal  share  of  the  spoil. 

Meanwhile,  the  inca  was  still  detained  in  captivity,  and  was  even 
secured  with  a  chain;  while  Pizarro  darkly  revolved  the  means  of 
ridding  himself  of  one  who  could  yield  him  no  further  service,  and 
whose  very  existence,  considering  the  devoted  loyalty  of  his  people, 
was  a  source  of  constant  uneasiness  to  his  gaolers.  Atahuallpa,  tho 
treasure  distributed,  had  earnestly  demanded  his  liberation,  and  the 
Spanish  general,  with  a  vile  affectation  of  good  faith,  which  makes 
his  treachery  and  cruelty  more  hideous  still,  caused  his  notary  to 
execute  a  full  receipt  for  the  stipulated  ransom.  But  a  pretext  for 
the  destruction  of  the  unfortunate  sovereign  was  already  prepared; 
and  Pizarro,  to  secure  himself  from  interference,  dispatched  De  Soto, 
a  cavalier  of  high  qualities,  and  a  friend  of  the  intended  victim,  on 
a  distant  expedition.  lie  then  taxed  his  captive  with  a  pretended 
plot  for  insurrection,  and  the  latter,  secretly  alarmed,  but  with  an 
air  of  gayety,  replied,  "You  are  always  jesting  with  me.  What  am 
I  or  my  people,  that  we  bliould  take  arms  against  you?  Do  not 
utter  such  jests."  "I  was  amazed,"  says  Pizarro,  in  his  account, 
"to  see  such  cunning  in  an  Indian." 

Nevertheless,  a  villanous  indictment,  charging  the  prisoner  with 
idolatry,  usurpation,  adultery,  and  intended  insurrection,  was  pres- 
ently hatched  up — "a  badly-contrived  and  worse-written  document," 
says  a  Spanish  contemporary,  "devised  by  a  factious  and  unprinci- 


286 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


pled  priest,  a  clumsy  notary  without  conscience,  and  others  of  the 
like  stamp,  who  were  all  concerned  in  this  villany."  On  the  strength 
of  this  shameful  instrument,  Pizarro  and  Almagro,  sitting  as  judges, 
with  the  assistance  of  the  murderous  Friar  Valverde,  went  through 
the  mockery  of  a  trial.  The  testimony  of  Indian  witnesses,  (falsified 
by  the  interpretation  of  Felipillo,  a  creature  of  Pizarro's,  and  a  per- 
sonal enemy  of  the  inca,)  was  taken,  and  judgment  was  given  that 
the  victim  should  be  burned  alive  the  same  night  in  the  square  of 
Caxamalcn.  The  honourable  remonstrances  of  several  Spanish  offi- 
cers, who  handed  in  a  written  protest  against  this  atrocity,  were  of 
no  avail.  The  unhappy  prisoner,  on  hearing  the  cruel  sentence, 
exclaimed,  with  tears,  "What  have  I  done,  or  my  children,  that  I 
should  meet  such  a  fate?  and  from  your  hands,  too,"  he  said,  turn- 
ing to  Pizai^o;  "you,  who  have  met  with  friendship  and  kindnes.s 
from  my  people,  with  whom  I  have  shared  my  treasures,  who  have 
received  nothing  but  benefits  at  my  hands  1" 

Then,  with  affecting  eagerness,  he  offered  fresh  treasures;  but 
Pizarro,  turning  aside  in  refusal,  (-./ith  tears,  it  is  said,  but  with  his 
cruel  purpose  unchanged,)  the  victim  resumed  the  stoicism  which, 
but  for  a  moment,  had  forsaken  him,  and  thenceforward  displayed 
only  calmness  and  fortitude. 

In  the  evening  (August  29th)  he  was  conducted,  in  prestiice  of 
the  whole  army,  by  torch-light,  to  the  stake.  Valverde,  with  eager 
importunity,  continued  to  urge  that  he  should  embrace  the  Christian 
faith,  promising  that,  if  he  would  comply,  the  milder  death  of  the 
garrote*  should  be  substituted  for  the  agonies  of  cremation.  Pi- 
zarro confirmed  the  offer,  and  the  inca,  from  a  singular  but  affecting 
superstition,  complied.  He  believed,  we  are  told  by  orie  who  was 
present,  that  if  his  body  was  not  destroyed  by  fire,  "the  Sun,  his 
father,  would  the  next  morning  restore  him  to  life."  Accordingly 
he  received  tlie  travesty  of  baptism,  with  the  name  of  Juan,  ("in 
honour  of  St.  John  the  Bapti.st!")  and  turning  to  Pizarro,  besought 
him  to  protect  his  or])lian  children.  lie  then,  with  calmness,  sub- 
mitted to  his  fate,  while  the  Spaniards,  muttering  prayers  for  his 
salvation,  beheld  tuo  last  of  the  incas  ijcrish  by  the  death  of  tlie 
vilest  of  malefactors.  The  body  was  laid  out  in  .state  in  the  church, 
and  the  obsequies  of  the  royal  convert  were  celebrated  with  much 
solemnity.     l)e  Soto,  on  his  return,  horrified  by  the  tidings,  mslied 

♦  An  instrumpnt  contrived  to  efii'ct  strangulation  and  rupture  of  the  vcrtebni'  ol 
the  neck — titill  used  in  the  Spanish  provinrjes. 


n 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


237 


into  the  presence  of  Pizarro,  whom  he  found,  says  a  writer  of  the 
day,  "  exhibiting  much  sentiment,  with  a  great  felt  hat  clapped  on 
his  head,  and  well  pulled  over  his  eyes."  To  the  indignant  com- 
plaints of  that  officer,  the  agents  in  this  devilish  act  replied  by 
mutual  accusations,  and  attempts  to  throw  the  entire  blame  on  the 
shoulders  of  each  other. 

"  Thus  ends  one  of  the  very  darkest  pages  of  Spanish  and  Amer- 
ican history.  No  reader  of  feeling  or  reflection  will  require  comment 
on  a  deed  bearing  in  its  face  the  brand  of  such  odious  perfidy, 
ingratitude  and  cruelty.  In  return  for  his  own  good  faith,  for  the 
submission  of  his  empire,  for  the  surrender  of  unhoped  treasure,  the 
unhappy  victim  met  with  imprisonment,  chains,  and  the  sentence  to 
a  cruel  and  revolting  death.  Despite  his  pompous  affectation  of 
regret,  (remorse  he  may  well  have  felt,)  the  burden  of  this  damning 
infamy  rests  almost  entirely  on  the  head  of  Pizarro.  Whatever 
instruments  he  employed,  the  deed  was  his  own — a  deed  which 
could  never  have  been  committed  by  any  but  such  as  himself — men 
naturally  fierce,  rapacious  and  cruel,  uneducated,  save  in  the  super- 
stitions of  a  wretched  dogmatism,  and  trained  from  childhood  to 
scenes  of  blood,  oppression,  and  violence.  Doubtless  a  dark  and 
cruel  policy  was  his  main  and  prompting  motive;  but  it  is  said  that 
the  incentive  of  personal  pique  was  not  wanting.  The  impi  isoned 
inca,  delighting  in  the  mysterious  art  of  writing,  (which  he  regarded 
as  a  new  sense,)  had  caused  the  name  of  God  to  be  inscribed  on  his 
nail,  and  had  presented  it  to  each  of  the  soldiers,  charmed  with 
their  ready  and  concurrent  response.  Pizarro,  who  had  never  learned 
to  read,  was  unable  to  ani.;\ver  him;  and  the  ill-concealed  contempt 
of  the  inca,  it  is  said,  awakened  a  hatred  in  the  heart  of  his  con- 
queror, that  ere  long  found  its  bloody  gratification. 

"To  one  who,  like  the  ancient  Greek,  believes  in  an  avenging 
Nemesis,  there  is  something  very  comfortable  in  recalling  the  violent 
deaths  which  befell  nearly  all  the  actors  in  this  doleful  tragedy — 
thougli  little  reflection  is  needed  to  show  that  the  evil  wishes  and 
undisciplined'  passions  which  prompted  tho  crime,  only  worked  out 
their  legitimate  end  in  involving  its  authors  in  fresh  and  fatal 
adventures.  Old  Purchas  (abating  one  or  two  mistakes  in  fact,  such 
as  the  complicity  of  Soto,)  gives,  in  a  few  words,  a  more  terse  and 
eilifyiiig  version  of  their  end  than  any  writer  on  the  subject.  'But 
God  tiie  righteous  Judge,  seeing  this  villanous  act,  suffered  none  of 
thuric  Spaniards  to  die  by  the  course  of  nature,  but  brouglit  tli-jm  to 


H 


I    ■■■*    _i*  !  ■til 


h  J.  <  V  jij 


If  >■. : 


238 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


eui'I  and  sTiamefull  ends.  »  »  *  His' (Atahuallpa's) 
•Murtherers  dyed,  it  is  said,  the  like  bloudy  ends;  Almagro  was 
executed  by  Piparro,  and  bee  slaine  by  yong  Almagro;  and  him 
Vacca  de  Castro  did  likewise  put  to  death.  lohn  Pi^arro  was  slaine 
of  the  Indians.  Martin  an  other  of  the  brethren  was  slaine  with 
Francis.  Ferdinandus  was  imprisoned  in  Spaine  and  his  end  vn- 
knowne;  Qomahs  was  done  to  death  by  Gasca.  Soto  dyed  of 
thought  in  Florida;  and  ciuill  warres  eate  vp  the  reste  in  Peru.'*"f 


CHAPTER   VII. 

EXECUTIOX    OF    C  H  A  LLCUC  H  IM  A. — INDIAN     HOSTILITIES. — 
ENTUANCE  OF  THE  SPANIARDS  INTO  CUZCO. MORE  TREAS- 
URE.  INAUGURATION   OF    THE    INCA     MANGO    CAPAC. — 

LIMA   FOUNDED. DISPUTES  BETWEEN  ALMAGRO    AND 

THE  PIZARROS. RISING  OF  THE  INDIANS. SIEGE 

OF     CUZCO. MASSACRE     OF     THE     SPANIARDS. 

CIVIL  WAR  BETWEEN  THE  SPANISH  GENERALS. 
DEFEAT  AND  EXECUTION  OF  ALMAGRO. 

His  crime  accomplished, 

"The  most  arch  deed  of  piteous  mnRsacre 
That  ever  yet  this  land  was  guilty  of," 

Pizarro,  with  five  hundred  Spaniard.s  and  many  Indians,  set  out  for 
Cuzco,  defeating  on  the  way,  at  Xauxa,  a  large  hostile  native  force, 
but  sustaining  some  loss  in  an  unlucky  expedition,  headed  by  De 
Soto.  A  fresh  instance  of  cruelty  di.sgraeed  his  march  in  the  murder 
of  Challcuchima,  to  whose  encouragement  he  attributed  tlie.se  hostil- 
ities, and  whom,  with  habitual  cruelty,  he  ordered  to  be  burned  alive. 
The  old  chief,  despite  the  exhortations  of  Valvcrde,  at  the  stake, 
declined  conversion,  saying  only,  "I  do  not  understand  the  religi<in 
of  the  white  men,"  and  undergoing  his  cruel  fate  with  true  Indian 
fortitude,  the  name  of  "  Pachacamac,"  the  last  word  upon  his  lips. 

•  Dincovorers,  &c.,  of  America. 

f  Vftlvcrdc,  pt-rlia])*  as  imi1|)!i1)1»'  m  any,  g:»ined  the  bishopric  of  Cuzco,  the  gr.nnd 
objwt  of  tiis  amt.ilion;  but  a  few  years  afti-rwards  periHlied^  with  others,  in  a  mas- 
«:icre  hv  the  Indians. 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


239 


To  countervail  the  anarchy  which  Jaad  already  begun  to  prevail 
among  the  numerous  tribes  of  Peru,  the  Spanish '  commander,  with 
all  practicable  ceremony,  had  invested  Toparca,  a  brother  of  his 
chief  victim,  with  the  imperial  dignity.  But  this  youth  died  on  the 
inarch,  and  soon  afterwards,  a  young  Peruvian  noble,  numerously 
attended,  presented  himself  in  the  Spanish  camp.  This  was  Manco 
Capac,  a  brother  of  Huascar,  who  now  claimed  the  throne,  and  to 
whom  the  general,  hoping  to  find  him  a  pliable  tool,  returned  en- 
couraging replies.  On  the  15th  of  November,  1533,  the  Spanish 
and  Indian  army  entered  Cuzco,  amid  the  eager  gaze  of  a  vast  mul- 
titude of  natives,  who  had  thronged  to  behold  the  terrible  strangers. 
The  population  of  the  city  alone,  it  is  said,  was  some  hundreds  of 
thousands,  and  the  Spaniards  were  surprised  at  the  evidences  of  art 
anu  refinement — the  forts  and  houses  of  stone,  admirably  wrought, 
the  pavement  of  the  same  material,  and  the  aqueduct  supplying  the 
city  with  water. 

I'resh  plunder,  much  of  it  obtained  by  torture,  repaid  the  cruelty 
of  the  invaders,  though  the  amount  was  less  than  had  already  been 
gained  as  the  ransom  of  the  unfortunate  inca.  Vast  hoards  of  treasure, 
it  is  siiid,  were  buried  in  various  parts  of  the  country  by  the  Peru- 
vians, who  thus  defrauded  the  rapacity  of  their  conquerors.  Enough, 
however,  was  obtained  to  enhance  the  lue  of  European  articles  to 
almost  fabulous  prices,  and  to  gratify  the  national  passioij  <",/  gaming 
to  its  wildest  and  most  ruinous  extent. 

I'izarro,  supposing  his  obedience  reliable,  now  invested  the  young 
Inca  Manco  with  the  imperial  title,  the  national  ceremonies  being 
golemnly  performed;  and  then  immediately  proceeded  with  his  plans 
for  the  subjection  and  settlement  of  the  coun'ry.  Tho  people, 
apparently  satisficv^  with  the  nominal  coronation  ot  a  native  sovereign, 
opposed  little  and  .'neflectual  resistance  to  the  supremacy  of  the 
invaders.  Near  Pachu^amac,  in  the  beautiful  valiey  of  Ritnac,  the 
victor,  in  January,  1535,  c  >mmenced  the  foundaticni  of  a  stately  cap- 
ital, which  he  called  "Ciudiu''  dc  los  Reyes"  (City  of  the  Kings),  but 
which,  under  the  name  of  Li'na,  still  retains  nearly  its  original 
appellation.  Under  the  toiling  hands  of  a  vast  multitude  of  Indian 
labourers,  a  massive  city,  with  palaces,  churches,  and  public  bui'i- 
ings,  rapidly  arose,  and  to  this  day  it  remains  one  of  the  fairest  and 
most  populous  capitals  of  the  New  World. 

Hernando,  in  January,  1632,  with  an  immense  treasure,  arrived 
in  Spain,  where  he  readily  procured  from  the  emperor  a  full  con- 


240 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


lirmation  of  the  acta  and  authority  of  his  brother;  and  with  a 
numerous  and  well-appointed  force  of  adventurers,  attracted  by  the 
brilliaut  tidings  of  plunder  and  conquest,  again  set  aail  for  the  isth- 
mus. A  royal  grant  was  likewise  made  to  Almagro,  empowering 
liim  to  conquer  and  rule  a  principality  of  his  own,  extending  two 
hundred  leagues  south  of  that  of  Pizarro.  That  ambitious  and  ill- 
used  commander,  on  receiving  the  news,  insisted  that  Cuzco,  where 
he  was  quartered,  lay  within  the  limits  of  his  jurisdiction;  and  a 
civil  war  between  the  two  factions  was  only  prevented  by  the  address 
of  Pizarro,  who  hastened  to  the  scene,  and  once  more  patched  up  a 
hollow  treaty  with  his  rival.  It  was  especially  provided  that  neither 
should  malign  or  disparage  the  other  in  their  dispatches  to  the  court 
and  both  parties  once  more  invoked  the  curses  of  Heaven  on  their 
heads,  if  they  should  violate  the  agreement.  Their  jealous  enmity 
thus,  for  the  moment,  apj)eased,  Almagro  set  forth  on  his  expedition 
for  the  conquest  of  the  realms  of  the  South.     (See  History  of  Chili.) 

The  young  irica,  Manco  Capac,  though  he  had  readily  accepted, 
and  even  solicited  elevation  to  power  at  the  hands  of  the  Conqueror 
was  not  blind  to  the  degradation  of  his  name  or  the  enslavement  of 
his  country.  Plotting  the  extermination  of  the  invaders,  he  had 
entrusted  to  his  brother  and  the  High-priest  of  the  Sun,  who  accom- 
panied Ahnagro,  a  secret  errand  of  insurrection  to  the  distant  caciijucs. 
Suspicion  Jjeing  excited,  he  was  arrested,  and  placed  in  clo.se  confinc- 
nient;  but,  by  an  ingeniuas  stratagem,  elTected  his  escape,  llavinrr 
won  the  conlidence  of  Hernando  Pizarro,  his  guardian,  by  successive 
disclosures  of  concealed  treasure,  he  was  suffered  to  depart,  with  a 
small  escort,  to  bring  to  Cuzco  a  statue  of  his  father,  the  Inca  Huayna 
Capac,  of  pure  gold,  which  he  said  iiad  been  deposited  in  a  cave  of 
the  Andes.  Hernando,  soon  finding  himself  duped,  dispatched  his 
brother  Juan,  with  sixty  horse,  in  pursuit  of  the  fugitive;  but  that 
oilieer  was  presently  met  by  an  army  of  several  thousand  Indians, 
under  command  of  Manco  himself,  and  was  compelled  to  retreat, 
hotly  pur.'-ued,  to  the  native  capital. 

He  found  that  city  surroun<led  by  an  immense  force  of  Peruvians 
- — it  is  said,  two  hundred  thousand  strong — which,  armed  with  cop- 
per-headed spears  and  axes,  presented  a  brilliant  and  terrible  appear- 
ance. Singular  to  sUite,  this  overwhelming  array  opened  its  rank.s, 
and  allowrd  the  little  body  ot  Sjtanish  cavaliers  to  pa.ss  unmolested 
into  the  town — tlieir  object,  most  liivcly,  being  to  st-cure  tin;  destruo 
tiuu  of  aa  many  of  the  invaders  as  possible.     (February,  luoC).) 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY    OF  PERU. 


241 


On  the  following  morning  they  assaulted  the  city  with  innumera- 
ble missiles,  and  by  burning  arrows  fired  the  roofs,  which,  being 
mostly  composed  of  thatch,  were  peculiarly  liable  to  conflagration. 
For  several  days  the  fire  raged  destructively,  and  consumed  more 
than  half  the  city.  The  Spaniards,  only  two  hundred  in  number, 
with  a  thousand  Indian  allies,  strongly  posted,  held  out  bravely ; 
and  being  well  supplied  with  cavalry,  made  several  sallies,  witli 
much  effect,  upon  the  thick  masses  of  their  besiegers.  Their  distress 
was  great,  on  perceiving,  from  the  heads  which  the  enemy  threw 
among  them,  that  a  general  slaughter  of  their  countrymen  in  the 
adjoining  regions  had  occurred.  Several  of  the  Indians  had  Eu- 
ropean armour  and  horses,  and  the  young  inca,  splendidly  mounted, 
aud  wielding  a  long  lance,  appeared  in  the  front  of  the  conflict. 
From  a  great  citadel,  commanding  the  Spanish  quarters,  the  besieged 
were  annoyed  by  showers  of  missiles;  but  Ilernando,  by  a  surprise 
in  the  night,  after  desperate  fighting,  took  it  by  storm.  In  this 
assault  perished  Juan  Pizarro,  whose  memory  is  burdened  with  less 
odium  than  that  of  his  kindred;  and  the  commander  of  the  fort,  an 
inca  noble  of  gigantic  stature  and  desperate  courage,  after  slaying 
with  his  luige  mace  a  number  of  assailants,  seeing  all  was  in  vain, 
flung  himself  headlong  from  the  summit. 

The  insurrection,  managed  with  extraordinary  secrecy  and  sud- 
denness, had  been  so  far  successful  that  several  hundreds  of  the 
Spaniards,  in  different  places,  had  been  slain,  and  Lima  itself,  at  one 
time,  had  been  in  a  state  of  siege.  The  governor,  after  defeating 
the  enemy  around  him,  dispatched  to  the  assistance  of  his  brothers 
in  Cuzco  several  detachments  of  Spaniards,  amounting,  in  all,  to  four 
hundred,  none  of  whom,  however,  succeeded  in  reaching  it,  being 
attacked  an<l  mostly  cut  off,  in  the  Cordilleras,  by  the  overwhelming 
forces  of  the  Peruvians.  Pizarro,  as  a  last  resort,  sent  letters,  entreat- 
ing assistance  from  Alvarudo,  the  conqueror  of  Guatemala,  and  from 
other  provincial  governors,  even  offering  to  share  with  them  the 
future  conquests  which  might  be  made  in  South  America.  Mean- 
while, the  little  garrison  of  Ciizco,  wonderful  to  state,  still  managed, 
by  the  strength  of  their  pu-^-ition,  the  superiority  of  their  arms,  and 
some  fortunate  supplies,  to  hold  out  against  the  numen)us  host  by 
which  they  were  .surrounded;  and  the  Indian  army,  gra  lually  less- 
ening, and  at  length  suffering  from  want  of  provisions,  after  a  siege 
of  five  months,  mostly  dispersed,  and  betook  itfcelf  to  the  planting 
01  the  annual  crops. 

Vol.  111.— 18 


mv-'-:- 


II 


In 
hi 


242 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY, 


-B 


The  Inca  Manco,  with  a  portion  of  his  force,  withdrew  to  Tambo, 
a  stronghold  not  far  from  the  city,  and  hostilities  were  still  briskly 
carried  on.  Hernando,  who  attempted  to  storm  this  place  in  a  night 
attack,  was  repulsed,  after  three  desperate  assaults,  by  the  inca,  and 
was  compelled,  with  the  eueniy  hanging  closely  on  his  rear,  to  regain, 
by  a  forced  march,  his  quarters  ut  Cuzco.  The  triumphant  Peru- 
vians,  however,  falling  upon  Almagro,  on  his  return  from  the  dis- 
astrous expedition  to  Chili,  in  the  valley  of  Yucay,  met  with  a 
signal  defeat. 

That  active  and  ambitious  commander,  the  old  grudge  against  his 
false  associate  still  rankling  in  his  mind,  now  determined  on  reas- 
serting by  force  his  claim  to  the  Peruvian  capital.  Accordingly,  on 
a  dark  and  stormy  night,  he  succeeded  in  taking  the  garrison  by 
surprise,  and  made  prisoners  of  Ilernando  and  Gonzalo  Pizarro. 
Immediately  after  this  signal  success,  he  marched  against  one  Alva- 
rado,  a  general  of  Pizarro's,  defeated  him,  and  brought  him  "ith 
nearly  all  his  force  of  five  hundred  men,  prisoners  to  Cuz<o.  The 
/jovernor,  enraged  and  alarmed  at  these  misfortunes,  was  unable,  for 
the  time,  to  avenge  them.  He  dispatched  Espinosa,  one  of  the  chief 
patrons  of  his  original  enterprise,  to  Cuzco,  to  attempt  negotiations, 
awaiting,  meanwhile,  tlu* strengthening  of  his  forces.  Gonzalo  and 
Alvarado  contrived  to  eflect  their  escape,  and  Almagro  finally  con- 
sented to  refer  the  matters  in  dispute  to  a  friar,  named  Bobadilla. 
This  umpire,  the  creature  of  Pizarro,  decided  every  point  in  favour 
of  the  latter,  who,  however,  was  enabled  to  obtain  the  release  of 
Hernando  only  by  assenting  to  more  liberal  conditions. 

This  object  once  attained,  without  the  slightest  regard  to  stipula- 
tions, he  at  once  recommeticed  hostilities,  and  dispatched  Hernando, 
with  an  army  of  seven  hundred  men,  against  his  detested  rival. 
Almagro,  with  a  somewhat  smaller  force,  encountered  him  not  far 
from  the  city;  but  being  disabled,  by  old  age  and  infirmities,  from 
leading  his  troops,  was  compelled  to  survey  the  scene  of  conflict 
from  a  litter.  His  lieutenant,  Orgonez,  a  cavalier  of  great  ferocity 
and  bravery,  took  the  command,  and  contested  the  battle,  which 
was  desperate  in  the  extreme.  Two  hundred  were  killed  on  the 
field,  but  the  partisans  of  Pizarro  finally  triumphed.  Almagro  was 
made  prisoner,  and  Orgonez,  with  others,  v.-as  ferociously  murdered 
after  surrender — a  circuinytance  demotistrating  the  extreme  hatred 
an<l  nsncour  which  prevailed  between  the  two  factions.  (April,  1538.) 
The  defeated  general,  after  the  mockery  of  a  protracted  trial,  con- 


m-M 


i^ 


*#^ 


9^' 


THE   CONQUEST   AND    HISTORY   OF   PERU. 


2i;3 


ducted  by  Ilernando,  was  sentenced  to  execution.  He  had  always 
been  noted  for  his  extreme  daring,  '  .a  had  probably  seen  more 
hard  fighting  than  any  other  man  in  Peru.  Yet,  strange  to  record, 
he  begged  piteously  for  '  life — a  degradation  which  availed  him 
nothing,  for  he  was  privai-jly  dealt  with  in  hia  dungeon,  by  the 
infamous  garrote. 


LiiAFiLii    Yiii, 

MISSION   OF  HERNANDO. — HIS  FATE.  —  EXPEDITION  OF  QON- 

ZALO  PIZARRO. DISCOVERY   OF   AND    VOYAGE    DOWN    THE 

AMAZON, — TERRIBLE  SUFFERINGS. — CONSPIRACY  AGAINST 
PIZARRO  BY  THE  PARTISANS  OF  ALMAGRO.  —  HIS  ASSAS- 
SINATION.— HIS  CHARACTER,  ETC. 

Dkeaping  lest  they  should  be  called  to  account  for  this  high- 
hanued  dealing  with  an  ofTicer  of  th?  crown,  the  Pizarros  resolved 
to  dispatch  Hernando,  with  a  great  trejusure,  to  fortify  t))eir  interests 
at  court.  Accordingly,  two  years  afier  the  death  of  Almagro,  ho 
reached  Spain,  but  met  with  a  cold  reception  from  the  emjHnor. 
Singularly  enough,  the  influence  of  a  devoted  adherent  of  iho  Alma- 
gran  faction  was  found  sufficient  to  outweigh  his  own,  though  backed 
by  all  the  wealth  of  Peru.  He  was  arrestui,  and  for  twenty  years 
was  kept  in  close  imprisonment,  not  being  a.uh  to  obtain  his  release 
until  1560.  At  that  time  all  his  brothers  wf^re  dead,  and  Peru  had 
passed  under  the  rule  of  others. 

Meanwhile,  the  Peruvians,  defeated  and  discouraged,  had,  in  great 
measure,  desisted  from  hostilities;  and  the  Inca  Manco,  on  one  occa- 
sion, was  so  harvl  pressed  as  to  be  compelled  to  talce  refuge,  with 
only  a  single  female  companion,  out  of  his  numerous  harem,  in  the 
savnge  recesses  of  the  Andes,  Gathering  a  force,  however,  and  sal- 
lying jft  intervals  from  his  stronghold  in  the  mountains,  he  inflicted 
much  damage  on  the  Spaniards;  and  Pizarro,  with  a  vile  revenge, 
tortured  to  death  one  of  the  wives  of  the  re\  Ited  prince,  a  young 
and  beautiful  woman,  whom  chance  had  thrown  into  his  hands.  "It 
.'jpems  to  me,"  writes  one  of  the  conquerors,  "that  our  Lord  punished 
him  for  this,  in  the  end  he  met."     But,  for  the  most  part,  the  natives 


m: 


%^ 


f 


244 


TUK  PEOrLE'8  BOOK  OF  III8T0KY. 


of  Peru  appeared  completely  overawed  by  the  continually-increasing 
lurco  of  the  Spaniaiuo 

Tlie  country,  of  course,  from  the  brilliant  attractions  pre?  ■  ted  by 
its  wealth  and  enhanced  by  the  sagacious  policy  of  Piz, trro,  was 
settled  with  extraordinary  rapidity.  The  government  of  Quito  had 
been  assigned  to  his  brother  Gonzalo,  a  man  of  high  enterprise,  who 
presently  made  great  preparations  for  fresh  discovery.  With  three 
hundred  and  fifty  Spaniards  and  four  thousand  Indians,  driving  a 
vast  herd  of  swine,  as  a  resource  against  famine,  in  the  year  1540, 
he  set  forth  for  the  eastward.  Crossing  the  Andes,  amid  terrible 
difticultics,  he  entered  the  Land  of  Cinnamon,  and  thence,  attracted 
by  alluring  reports  of  treasure,  pressed  onward  to  the  Napo,  one  of 
the  tributaries  of  the  Amazon.  By  this  time,  all  the  swine,  as  well 
IIS  a  thousand  dogs  provided  for  warfare  with  the  natives,  had  been 
ilevDured  or  lost,  or  had  perished  on  the  way;  and  the  adventurers, 
sull'ering  grievously  from  famine,  were  compelled  to  feed  on  wild 
routM,  ou  toads  and  other  loathsome  reptiles,  and  finally  even  on  the 
Iciitlier  of  their  belts  and  saddles. 

To  evade  the  almost  insurmountable  difficulties  of  following  the 
river,  Gonzalo  commenced  the  building  of  a  vessel,  converting  the 
sh(n\s  of  the  horses  into  nails,  and  the  ragged  garments  of  the  sol- 
diers into  oaku)  I.  By  two  months  of  constant  labour,  it  was  com- 
})leted,  and  FiJimi;^'')  de  Orellana,  with  a  small  crew,  was  put  in 
command,  vn'.l  dirr.c tions  to  proceed  down  the  river  and  procure 
supplie:-..  AiU:'/  vi'  iting  a  long  time  in  vain  for  his  return,  the 
army  again  took  u^  its  march  along  the  banks,  and,  after  two  months 
more  of  extreme  toil  rnd  suffering,  reached  the  Amazon.  From  a 
Spaniard  who  had  here  been  set  ashore  by  Orellana,  they  learned 
taut  that  commander,  carried  downward  by  a  fierce  current,  had 
reached  the  Great  Kiver  in  only  three  days;  that  finding  it  impossi- 
ble to  return  against  it,  he  had  abandoned  his  companions  to  their 
fate,  and  continued  his  course  down  the  Amazon.  Extraordinary 
to  relate,  after  the  most  memor&''iO  inland  voyage  on  record,  he 
reached  the  sea,  and  arrived  safely  in  Spain.  No  course  now  re- 
mained for  Gonzalo  but  to  retrace  his  step.s,  and*  accordingly,  after 
niurc  than  a  year  consumed  in  this  terrible  march,  and  an  equal 
time  in  the  return,  in  June,  1542,  with  the  remnant  of  his  command, 
he  succeeded  in  regaining  his  capital  of  Quito.  Only  eighty  of  the 
.Spaniards  and  one  half  the  Indians  had  survived. 

The  triumph  of  Pizarro  at  the  downfall  of  his  ancient  rival,  was 


% 


THE  CONQUEST  AND   niSTORY    OF  PERU. 


245 


i'izarro,  how- 

nt,    iisworing  to 

Ul    uey  have  had 

\       *      *      Be 

.  r  remonstrances, 


insolent  in  the  extreme.  To  those  who  urged  the  hereditary  rights 
(,f  young  Almagro,  (son  of  the  defeated  general,)  he  answered  sharply 
"that  his  own  government  covered  all  on  this  sii'  Flanders."  All 
the  estates  of  the  "Men  of  Chili,"  as  the  Almagran  fufction  was 
called,  were  mercilessly  confiscated,  and  the  Hhattcr  d  rcMuains  of 
that  once  powerful  party,  with  the  young  chief  ut  thr'-  head,  betook 
themselves  to  Lima,  where  they  .'nought  in  vmn  for  redress  or  con- 
sideration. Sunk  in  the  most  wr*'*fihed  poveri»,  the  keenness  of 
which  was  aggravated  by  the  sneers     f  i  triuii.^   lant  enemies, 

these  unfortunate  partisans  finally  1  <  mc  U' 
ever,  treated  their  enmity  with  undisgi.  ''fl 
tho^e  who  cautioned  him  against  them,  ' 
bad  luck  enough.  We  will  not  trouble  ,  , 
under  no  concern,"  he  haughtily  answered  to 
"about  my  life.  It  is  safe  enough  so  long  a.s  evory  man  in  Peru 
knows  that  I  can  in  a  moment  cut  off  any  head  that  dares  to  harbour 
a  thought  against  it." 

Tlie  chief«i  of  the  despised  faction,  in  despair  at  a  report  of  the  loss 
of  Vaca  do  Castro,  (who  had  been  appointed  by  the  crown  as  arbi- 
trator of  these  civil  discords,)  at  last,  in  their  extremity,  resolved  on 
the  assas.sination  of  the  viceroy.  One  of  their  number,  through 
conscientious  scruples,  revealed  the  plot  in  confession,  and  the  con- 
fessor hastened  to  lay  the  particulars  before  the  government.  But 
Pizarro,  deen\ing  the  statement  impossible,  sa'd,  "The  priest  wants 
a  bishopric,"  and  wa.s  with  difficulty  persuaded  by  his  friends  to  stay 
at  home  on  the  day  appointed  for  his  destruction. 

On  that  day  (Sunday,  June  2fi,  15-il,)  the  conspirators,  twenty  in 
number,  were  assembled  at  the  house  of  Almagro,  resolved  to  fall  on 
the  governor  as  he  returned  from  mass.  Perceiving,  from  his  absence, 
that  their  plot  was  discovered  or  at  least  su.spected,  in  a  species  of 
desperation,  they  rushed  into  the  street,  crying,  "Long  live  the  king! 
death  to  the  tyrant  I"  Pizarro,  at  the  time,  was  at  dinner,  with  a 
number  of  his  friends,  when  a  breathless  domestic  entered  the  room, 
crying,  "Help I  help!  all  the  Men  of  Chili  are  coming  to  murder  the 
Marquis!"  Most  of  the  guests,  being  unarmed,  fled  precipitately  into 
tlie  garden,  and  Pizarro  ordered  Chaves,  one  of  his  officers,  to  keep 
the  door,  while  he  buckled  on  his  armour.  That  cavalier,  however, 
attempting  to  parley  with  the  aslailants,  was  instantly  slain,  and  his 
body  was  flung  down  the  stairs.  Martin  de  Alcantara,  Pizarro's 
hulfbrother,  who  was  assisting  the  latter  with  his  armour,  next 


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246 


Tliii  l'KOPLE'8   BOOK   Ui'   JllSTUUV. 


sprang  to  the  door,  and,  with  a  few  of  the  governor's  household, 
defended  it  valiantly;  but,  after  doing  some  execution,  was  over- 
powered and  slain. 

Pizarro  now  flung  away  his  cuirass,  which  he  had  vainly  endeav- 
oured to  buckle  on,  and,  with  a  cloak  wrapped  round  his  left  arm, 
sword  in  hand,  sprang  like  a  lion  into  the  fray.  "Ha,  traitors!" 
shouted  the  old  viceroy,  "have  you  come  to  kill  me  in  my  own 
house!  Courage,  my  friends,  we  are  yet  enough  to  make  them 
repent  their  audacity."  He  killed  three  of  the  conspirators  with  his 
own  hand,  but  was  at  last  struck  to  the  earth  by  the  numerous 
weapons  of  his  enemies.  Seeing  his  death,  he  besought  a  confessor, 
but  none  was  at  hand;  and,  tracing  a  cross  on  the  floor  with  his  own 
blood,  and  attempting  to  kiss  it,  he  murmured,  "  Jesu!"  and  yielded 
up  his  soul  under  numerous  sword-thrusts.  The  triumphant  assas- 
.sins  rushed  into  the  street,  brandishing  their  bloody  swords,  and 
crying,  "The  tyrant  is  dead!  Long  live  the  emperor  and  his  gov- 
ernor, Almagro." 

The  Men  of  Chili,  still  three  hundred  in  number,  at  once  rallied 
around  their  youthful  chief,  and  proclaimed  him  governor — the  par- 
tisans of  Pizarro,  completely  overawed,  venturing  on  no  opposition. 
That  same  night,  the  remains  of  the  victim,  wrapped  in  a  coarse 
cotton  cloth,  and  attended  only  by  his  wife  and  a  few  black  servants, 
were  huddled  into  an  obscure  grave  in  the  corner  of  the  cathedral. 
They  were  afterwards,  however,  removed  to  a  more  honourable  place, 
and  commemorated  by  a  monument  suitable  to  his  high  rank  and 
great  achievements. 

"Thus,  at  the  age  of  about  sixty-five,  perished  Francisco  Pizarro, 
the  Conqueror  of  Peru,  the  most  remarkable  and  perhaps  the  worst 
man  of  that  host  of  discoverers  and  conquerors  by  whom  the  early 
history  of  America  has  been  illustrated  and  disgraced.  His  career 
forms  the  best  commentary  on  his  character.  Ambition  and  rapacity 
appear  to  have  been  his  ruling  traits;  but  he  was  not  avaricious;  for 
his  immense  acquisitions  were  devoted  not  merely  to  his  own 
aggrandizement,  but  to  the  nobler  office  of  building  cities,  settling 
colonies,  and  laying  the  foundations  of  an  empire.  Though  bigoted 
in  the  extreme,  he  had  none  of  that  crusading  zeal  which  so  emi- 
nently distinguished  Cortes,  and  he  was  far  more  anxious  to  seize 
the  treasures  and  to  enslave  the  bodies  of  the  Indians  than  to  con 
vert  their  souls.  Doubtless,  he  was  as  brave  as  a  man  can  be,  and 
possessed  of  a  fortitude  and  perseverance  perhaps  surpassing  that 


THE  CONQUEST   AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


247 


of  any  character  recorded  in  history.  But  he  was  cruel,  remorseless, 
and  perfidious  to  the  very  extremest  degree ;  and  his  name  has  ever 
been  held  in  deserved  execration  by  the  great  majority  of  mankind."* 


,.t    .■      ■:^_  ---r- 


•.      I    -l.v      .,    .    l.i:.   ■: 


•'■(><  ff 


tlJblilt^Xiljli         it     JLm 


VACA  DE  CASTRO. — DEPEAT  OP  YOUNG  ALMAOEO  AT  CHUPA8. — 

BLASCO  NUffEZ  DB  VELA. — UNPOPULAR  DECREES.^ — REBELLION 

HEADED  BY  GONZALO  PIZARRO. — OVERTHROW  OP  THE  VICEROY. 


By  a  singular  coincidence,  devoutly  ascribed  by  an  early  writer 
to  the  special  interposition  of  Providence,  a  legitimate  successor  to 
the  viceroyalty  of  Peru  had  already  arrived  in  the  New  World  at  the 
time  of  Pizarro's  assassination.  This  was  the  Licentiate  Vaca  de 
Castro,  who  came  over  from  Spain  ostensibly  as  a  royal  commissioner 
to  lend  the  aid  of  his  legal  knowledge  and  ability  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  government;  but  with  private  instructions  to  keep  close 
watch  over  Pizarro's  conduct,  and  to  make  report  to  the  Spanish 
court  of  any  undue  assumption  of  power,  or  threatened  infringement 
of  the  royal  prerogative.  He  was  also  provided  with  formal  authority 
to  succeed  to  the  government,  in  case  of  the  death  of  the  reigning 
viceroy.  ■ 

The  timely  approach  of  this  official  gave  opportunity  to  the 
opponents  of  the  rebellious  Men  of  Chili,  to  unite  their  forces  and 
take  a  definitive  position.  Alonzo  de  Alvarado,  and  Alvarez  de 
Ilolguin,  two  of  the  principal  military  officers  of  Pizarro,  were  both 
in  command  of  trusty  and  veteran  troops,  and  readily  lent  their 
assistance  in  opposition  to  the  Almagran  faction.  Vaca  de  Castro 
had  not  been  bred  to  arms,  but  the  courage  and  spirit  natural  to  a 
Spanish  cavalier  sustained  him  in  his  dangerous  position.  He  has- 
tened to  Quito,  and  collecting  what  forces  he  could  muster,  proclaimed 
his  commission,  and  prepared  to  enter  upon  a  forcible  assertion  of 
his  rights.  Messengers  were  dispatched  in  various  directions  to  set 
forth  his  claims  in  the  more  important  towns. 

Young  Almagro,  in  the  mean  time,  having  furnished  his  little 
army  at  Lima  with  abundance  of  martial  equipments  and  with 

•  Discoverers,  &c.,  of  America. 


248 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


horses,  hastened  to  cut  off  the  approach  of  Holguin,  who,  havinfr 
established  the  legitimate  authority  at  Cuzco,  was  on  his  march  to 
join  the  forces  of  Alvarado.  At  this  juncture  the  cause  of  the 
insurgents  suffered  heavy  loss  by  the  death  of  the  chief  conspirator, 
Juan  de  Rada.  The  quarrels  between  two  rival  claimants  to  his 
position  in  the  army  occasioned  such  difficulties  and  delay,  that 
Ilolguin  completed  his  march  without  impediment. 

Almagro  therefore  proceeded  to  Cuzco,  and  having  taken  posses- 
sion of  the  city,  devoted  himself  to  preparing  his  forces  for  the 
anticipated  struggle.  Cannon  were  cast,  under  the  superintendence 
of  Pedro  de  Candia  himself,  who  had  espoused  Almagro's  cause,  and 
gun-powder  was  manufactured,  saltpetre  being  procured  in  the 
vicinity.  Arms  plundered  at  the  former  siege  of  Cuzco  were  also 
brought  in  and  delivered  to  the  troops  by  the  subjects  of  Manco  the 
Inca.  In  the  midst  of  his  preparations,  the  young  commander  vainly 
endeavoured  to  negotiate  with  the  new  viceroy,  offering  to  confine 
himself  to  the  occupation  of  his  paternal  inheritance  of  New  Toledo. 

Vaca  de  Castro  having  joined  the  forces  of  Ilolguin  and  Alvarado, 
and  having  personally  assumed  the  command  of  the  army,  moved 
forward  towards  Xauxa.  With  a  small  escort  he  visited  Lima,  where 
he  was  enthusia.stically  received,  and  where  he  procured  fresh  recruits 
and  supplies  of  arms  and  ammunition.  From  Xauxa  he  marched  to 
Guamanga,  thirty  leagues  distant,  and  thence  to  the  plains  of  Chupas, 
where,  on  the  16th  of  September,  1542,  he  encountered  the  army  of 
Almagro.  The  latter  was  posted  in  a  favourable  position,  when, 
the  artillery,  of  which  he  possessed  sixteen  effective  pieces,  could  >k 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  assailants.  Ilis  forces  were  nuMierically 
inferior  to  those  of  the  viceroy,  whose  whole  array  amounted  to 
about  seven  hundred  men,  but  in  arms  and  equipments  his  troops 
had  greatly  the  advantage. 

As  the  forces  of  the  viceroy  approached,  the  battle  commenced  by 
a  discharge  of  artillery ;  but,  as  was  sujiposed,  from  the  treachery 
of  Pedro  de  Candia,  the  guns  were  so  misdirected  or  mismanaged 
that  little  effect  was  produced  upon  the  assailants.  Almagro,  with 
his  own  hand,  took  the  life  of  the  offender  upon  the  field.  A  bloody 
and  obstinately  contested  fray  ensued,  and  was  maintained  with 
unabated  fury  until  long  after  night- fall,  when  victory  declared  in 
favour  of  the  viceroy,  Almagro  and  his  remaining  followers  were 
driven  from  the  field  in  total  rout.  The  unfortunate  but  gallant 
young  chieftain  was  seized  at  Cuzco,  and,  after  a  military  trial,  w;is 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


249 


condemned  to  death.  He  met  his  fate  with  great  heroism.  Multi- 
tudes of  his  partisans  were  also  hunted  from  their  places  of  conceal- 
ment or  refuge,  and  perished,  like  their  leader,  on  the  scaffold. 

Vaca  de  Castro  did  not  long  remain  in  possession  of  the  dignity 
maintained  with  such  distinguished  courage  on  the  field  of  Chupas, 
and  such  unrelenting  severity  in  the  day  of  success.  He  was  super- 
seded by  an  aged  knight  by  the  name  of  Blasco  Nunez  Vela,  who 
arrived  at  Peru  i^  the  month  of  March,  1544.  Tiie  appointment  of 
this  official  was  due  to  the  unwearied  exertions  of  Las  Casas  and 
other  philanthropists,  who  had  laboriously  collected  evidence  of  the 
enormities  practiced  in  the  colonies,  and  pressed  it  upon  the  con- 
science of  the  emperor.  The  manner  in  which  the  aborigines  were 
enslaved  and  destroyed  to  enrich  their  rapacious  masters;  the  waste 
of  the  national  resources  in  the  wanton  destruction  of  the  flocks  of 
llamas;  the  consequent  poverty  and  misery 'of  the  Indians,  who,  ill- 
fed,  unhoused,  and  nearly  naked,  were  condemned  to  hopeless  and 
unceasing  toil  in  the  mines;  and  the  general  misrule  and  corruption, 
were  laid  open  and  eloquently  animadverted  upon  before  a  royal 
council,  convened  at  Valladolid  for  the  purpose  of  framing  laws  foi 
the  colonies  in  the  New  World. 

A  code  was  accordingly  prepared,  and  received  the  roya^  sanction, 
by  which,  among  other  provisions,  the  prospective  freedom  of  all 
Indian  slaves  was  provided  for,  and  many  regulations  were  laid 
down  for  their  protection.  Public  officers  and  ecclesiastics,  together 
with  all  who  had  shared  in  the  cause  of  the  insurgents  against  the 
legitimate  government,  were  absolutely  forbidden  to  hold  slaves. 
Other  acts  of  misconduct  were  also  to  work  a  forfeiture  of  this  species 
of  property.  To  enforce  the  new  code,  Blasco  Nunez  was  sent  over 
from  Spain,  in  company  with  four  judges,  armed  with  the  imperial 
commission  to  assist  in  the  administration  of  the  government. 

The  new  viceroy  commenced  the  execution  of  his  orders  with  the 
utmost  promptitude  and  severity.  He  liberated  some  hundreds  of 
Peruvian  slaves  at  Panama,  when  on  his  way,  and  had  no  sooner 
reached  his  destined  port  than  he  pursued  a  like  course,  upon  the 
representations  of  some  native  chiefs.  When  his  character  and 
mission  were  made  public,  the  whole  community  was  in  a  ferment. 
The  landed  proprietors  and  those  connected  with  the  mining  interest 
saw  their  resources  about  to  be  curtailed  to  such  an  extent,  that  ruin 
stared  them  in  the  face,  and  a  general  determination  was  evinced  to 
resist  the  execution  of  the  new  civil  code. 


260 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  07  HISTOBY. 


h 


GoDzalo  Pizarro,  who  had  been  for  some  time  living  in  compara 
live  retirement,  devoting  his  attention  to  the  opening  and  working 
of  the  newly-discovered  silver  mines  of  Potosi,  was  now  called  upon 
to  head  the  malcontents.  Disappointed  ambition,  mercenary  inter- 
est in  preserving  the  old  order  of  things,  and  fear  of  being  held 
responsible  for  his  share  in  the  former  feud,  combined  to  incline 
him  in  favour  of  the  insurgent  faction,  and  he  accordingly  proceeded 
to  Cuzco,  accompanied  by  a  few  trusty  companions-in-arms,  and 
provided  with  abundant  funds — the  result  of  his  successful  mining 
operations.  At  Cuzco  he  was  enthusiastically  received,  and  was 
proclaimed  "Procurator-General  of  Peru"  and  "Captain  General," 
with  express  authority  to  raise  and  command  a  military  force. 

Blasco  Nufiez  was  received  at  the  capital  with  all  outward  cere- 
monials of  respect,  by  his  predecessor,  Vaca  de  Castro,  and  by  the 
city  officials.  He  publicly  announced  his  determination  to  enforce 
the  new  code,  but  at  the  same  time  agreed  to  cooperate  with  the 
inhabitants  of  Peru  in  procuring  its  repeal.  He  appeared  to  be  little 
aware  of  the  formidable  nature  of  the  preparations  at  Cuzco,  under 
the  superintendence  of  Gouzalo  Pizarro,  or  of  the  feebleness  of  the 
empty  title  of  viceroy,  unsupported  by  the  loyalty  of  the  great  mass 
of  the  population. 

The  latter  chief,  having  organized  and  equipped  an  army  of  about 
four  hundred  Spanish  soldiers,  with  sixteen  pieces  of  artillery 
broughi  by  Indian  vassals  over  the  mountains  from  Guamanga,  and 
a  great  body  of  native  auxiliaries,  marched  out  of  Cuzco,  and  took 
the  road  towards  Lima.  The  first  occurrences  in  his  march  were 
rather  disheartening.  In  raising  his  force  he  had  held  out  as  one 
essential  object  the  holding  in  check  the  belligerent  natives  under 
the  wandering  inca,  Manco,  whose  noble  and  warlike  spirit  had 
never  yet  been  subdued  by  the  prowess  or  craft  of  his  adversaries. 
He  had  also  professed  the  utmost  loyalty  to  the  crown,  and  an  ardent 
desire  for  a  pacific  arrangement  of  the  existing  difliculties.  The 
deatli  of  Manco,  who  was  slain  by  a  straggling  party  of  the  "Men 
of  Chili,"  then  in  hiding  among  the  Indians,  removed  one  avowed 
pretext  for  raising  an  army,  and  the  unscrupulous  manner  in  which 
the  ambitious  loader  seized  upon  the  public  funds  in  equipping  the 
troops,  disabused  his  followers  in  respect  to  his  loyalty  and  freedom 
from  a  desire  of  personal  aggrandizement.  Numerous  desertions  took 
place  among  those  whose  hearts  failed  them  at  the  thought  of  open 
rebellion  against  legitimate  authority.     But  as  he  approached  Lima, 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  IIISTOKY  OF  PEKU. 


251 


their  losses  were  counterbalanced  by  a  great  accession  to  bis  forces — 
the  result  of  the  ill-regulated  and  violent  procedure  of  the  viceroy. 

Every  thing  seemed  to  conspire  to  thwart  the  purposes  and  com- 
plete the  ruin  of  Nunez.  The  general  tenor  of  his  conduct  was  rash 
and  arbitrary.  Upon  a  vague  and  unfounded  suspicion  of  treachery, 
he  threw  Vaca  de  Castro  into  confinement,  and,  by  giving  vent  to  his 
jealousy,  alienated  others  who  might  have  proved  staunch  adherents 
to  his  cause.  One  of  these,  named  Carbajal,  he  slew  or  caused  to  be 
slain  in  the  heat  of  an  altercation  which  arose  at  a  private  confer- 
ence. To  add  to  the  perplexity  and  embarrassment  of  the  viceroy, 
the  Judges  of  the  Audience,  who  were  to  lend  their  aid  in  the  gov- 
ernment, having  arrived  at  the  capital,  vigorously  opposed  his 
measures,  and  intrigued  for  the  subversion  of  his  power. 

Conscious  of  his  extreme  unpopularity,  and  feeling  no  confidence 
in  his  army,  Nunez,  upon  the  near  approach  of  Pizarro,  issued  orders 
for  an  abandonment  of  the  city  and  a  retreat  to  Truxillo.  The 
cnpital  and  the  intervening  country  were  to  be  devastated,  that  the 
forces  of  the  insurgents  might  be  compelled  to  disband  for  lack  of 
supplies.  At  this  crisis,  the  judges  headed  a  party  of  the  populace, 
and,  attacking  the  palace  of  the  viceroy,  seized  his  person,  and 
declaring  his  authority  at  an  end,  dispatched  him,  in  close  custody, 
to  Spain,  and  organized  a  new  government,  under  the  presidency  of 
Cepeda,  one  of  their  own  number. 

It  was  hardly  to  be  expected  that  Gonzalo  Pizarro,  at  the  head 
of  a  large  and  constantly  increasing  force,  and  secure  in  the  favour 
of  the  inhabitants,  would  submit  to  the  authority  of  these  selfcon- 
stituted  rulers,  lie  accordingly  paid  no  attention  to  the  overtures 
of  the  judges,  but  openly  avowed  his  determination  to  assume  the 
government.  lie  sent  one  of  his  officers,  Francisco  de  Carbajal,  a 
fierce  old  soldier  who  had  taken  an  active  part  in  former  feuds,  in 
advance,  to  prepare  for  his  own  entrance  into  the  city.  This  emi.^- 
sary  commenced  operations  by  searching  out  and  putting  to  death 
several  of  the  deserters  from  Pizarro's  army,  who  had  taken  refuge 
in  the  capital.  Such  a  proceeding  inspired  a  natural  terror  in  the 
minds  of  the  judge?,  and  they  hastened  to  deprecate  the  wrath  of 
the  conqueror  by  voluntarily  ofVcring  him  the  position  at  which  he 
aimed.  Gonzalo  entered  the  city  with  great  state  and  ceremony, 
and  was  formally  sworn  into  office,  which  he  was  to  hold  until 
further  communications  should  be  received  from  the  Spanish  court, 
llis  accession  was  hailed  by  the  inhabitants  with  general  rejoicing. 


252 


TUE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  UIBTORT. 


r" 
s    . 


■-•■   » 


CTI    A    D  T  1?  T)      T 
JiiL   tbl  XT    X    lU  lU      lAi* 


FOftCBS  RAISED  BY  NDKEZ. — HIS  FLIGHT  NORTHWARD, — DECISIVK 
BATTLE  NEAR  QUITO. — DEATH   OP   THE   VICEROY.  —  SUPREM- 
ACY  OF   PIZARRO. — MISSION  OF  PEDRO  DB  LA  OA.SCA. — 
HIS  POLITIC  PROCEBDINOS.  —  BATTLE  OF  HUA- 
,.      -i^.X'^         BINA.  —  PIZARRO  AT   CUZCO.  • 

Although  the  new  governor  was  now  apparently  at  the  summit 
of  his  expectations,  circumstances  speedily  arose  to  embarrass  him, 
and  call  for  the  exertion  of  all  his  skill  and  energy  to  maintain  his 
position.  Vaca  de  Castro,  by  the  assistance  of  the  captain  of  the 
vessel  on  board  which  he  was  confined,  contrived  to  make  hia  es- 
cape. The  result  of  this  proceeding  did  not,  however,  materially 
affect  the  interests  of  the  governor.  The  fugitive  reached  Spain 
only  to  be  thrown  into  prison  upon  various  charges  of  mal-adminis- 
tratiou  in  his  colonial  office.  After  twelve  years  of  imprisonment, 
his  innocence  was  finally  recognised,  and  he  was  raised  to  an  hon- 
ourable position  in  old  Spain.  An  active  enemy  to  the  new  govern- 
ment of  Peru  yet  remained  to  be  crushed.  Blasco  Nunez,  by  the 
favour  of  Alvarez,  one  of  the  judges  who  had  been  commissioned 
to  conduct  him  to  Spain,  returned  to  Peru,  and,  proclaiming  Gonzalo 
and  his  adherents  rebels  and  traitors,  commenced  the  enlistment  of 
forces  for  the  rgassertion  of  his  own  legitimate  supremacy. 

His  quarters  were  successively  at  Tumbez,  Quito,  and  San  Miguel, 
from  which  latter  town  he  moved  precipitately  upon  the  approach 
of  Pizarro  with  a  superior  force.  Sebastian  Benalcazar,  the  com< 
mander  at  Popayan,  had  communicated  his  determination  to  the 
viceroy  to  lend  his  assistance  for  the  support  of  the  royal  cause,  and 
towards  the  district  under  that  officer's  jurisdiction  Nunez  conducted 
his  little  band,  with  Pizarro  and  his  forces  in  hot  pursuit.  The 
sufferings  of  either  army  during  this  terrible  retreat,  in  which  every 
imaginable  difficulty,  from  the  inhospitable  nature  of  the  country 
traversed,  was  added  to  the  horrors  of  war,  would  have  disheart- 
ened troops  less  accustomed  to  danger  and  privation  than  the  old 
Spanish  adventurers.  Nunez  made  his  way  to  Popayan,  and 
Pizarro,  after  having  followed  his  enemy  into  the  territory  of 
Benalcazar,  without  having  been  able  to  draw  him  into  a  decisive 


li 


TH£  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


263 


conflict,  returned  to  Quito  to  await  his  approach  with  the  expected 
reinforcements.  *"     *'    ■      -^  .       <*    /  .; 

By  a  feigned  retreat  from  the  ancient  capital,  Pizarro  succeeded 
in  deceiving  his  opponent,  and  in  drawing  hira  from  his  distant 
place  of  security.  Just  without  the  city,  on  the  18th  of  January, 
1546,  the  fate  of  the  viceroy  was  decided  by  a  final  engagement. 
He  fell,  fighting  bravely,  and  his  followers  being  slain  or  dispersed, 
none  remained  to  dispute  the  supremacy  of  the  popular  usurper. 
Gonzalo  was  possessed  of  many  qualities  calculated  to  secure  the 
favour  of  the  colonists.  He  was  in  every  respect  a  man  of  the  age, 
and  his  gallant  and  chivalrous  bearing,  combined  with  the  remem- 
brance of  his  share  in  the  conquest,  aroused  the  admiration  of  a 
people  accustomed  to  look  upon  military  excellence  as  the  grand 
essential  for  a  ruler. 

An  insurrection,  headed  by  Diego  Centeno,  in  the  southern 
provinces,  having  been  crushed  by  the  efficient  and  unscrupulous 
Carbajal,  nearly  simultaneously  with  his  successes  at  the  north, 
Pizarro  was  for  the  time  complete  arbiter  of  the  destinies  of  Peru. 
He  maintained  his  position  with  great  pomp  and  magnificence,  yet 
in  the  midst  of  his  success  and  popularity,  must  have  brooded 
with  no  little  anxiety  over  the  probable  results  of  the  reception  of 
intelligence  respecting  his  movements  at  the  Spanish  court.  Car- 
bajal openly  advised  him  to  throw  aside  all  thoughts  of  obtaining 
favour  and  countenance  from  Spain,  and  to  depend  upon  force  alone 
for  the  retention  of  his  power. 

Unwilling  to  hazard  such  an  extreme  measure,  Gonzalo  neverthe- 
less took  the  greatest  precautions  to  guard  against  the  entry  into  his 
dominions  of  any  emissary  from  the  royal  court,  and  prepared  to 
send  an  ambassador  to  Spain,  charged  with  the  vindication  of  his 
conduct  and  the  request  of  confirmation  in  his  government 

When  news  of  the  rebellion  arrived  in  Spain,  Charles  V.,  afler 
deliberate  consultation  with  the  principal  officers  of  his  kingdom, 
determined  upon  essaying  gentle  means  for  the  restoration  of  his 
colony  to  allegiance.  A  learned  and  sagacious  ecclesiastic,  named 
Pedro  de  la  Gasca,  was  nominated  by  the  council  as  commissioner 
to  settle  the  affairs  of  Peru,  and  such  confidence  was  reposed  in  him 
by  the  emperor,  that  he  was  armed  with  the  most  unlimited  discre- 
tionary powers.  As  the  first  essential  to  a  cordial  reception  on  the 
part  of  the  colonists,  he  was  authorized  to  revoke  the  unpopular 
decrees  which  had  caused  the  ruin  of  Nunez,  and  to  grant  comphite 


?%. 


'%' 


254 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


pardon  to  all  offenderB,  particularly  those  concerned  in  the  insur- 
rection. Under  the  title  of  "President  of  the  Royal  Audience,"  he 
was  in  effect  clothed  with  all  the  powers  of  royalty,  being  respouBiblo 
only  to  the  Spanish  court. 

When  Gasca  arrived  in  the  New  "World,  in  July,  1546,  and  received 
intelligence  of  Pizarro's  complete  supremacy,  he  employed  the  most 
judicious  and  artful  policy  to  gain  over  the  people  before  making  an 
open  demonstration.  In  accordance  with  his  own  wishes  and  advice, 
he  came  ^vithout  any  military  force;  be  made  no  ostentatious  display 
of  authority;  but  relying  upon  the  loyalty  natural  to  the  Spaniard, 
and  holding  forth  the  royal  promises  of  amnesty  and  protection,  he 
called  on  all  true  subjects  of  the  empire  to  join  him  in  a  peaceful 
settlement  of  the  disturbed  affairs  of  the  colony.  Despite  Pizarro's 
caution,  he  succeeded  in  distributing  missives  and  proclamations 
throughout  the  principal  cities,  and  occupied  himself  in  the  mean 
time  in  gaining  over  those  officials  to  whom  he  could  obtain  access. 
Ilernan  Mexia,  the  commandant  at  Nombre  de  Dios,  received  the 
royal  commissioner  and  espoused  his  cause.  The  next  effort  was  to 
win  the  favour  and  assistance  of  Hinojosa,  the  governor  of  Panama, 
at  which  port  the  Peruvian  fleet  then  lay.  ', 

Gasca  proceeded  thither  in  person,  and  although  at  first  unable 
to  overcome  the  scruples  of  the  governor,  had  opportunity  to  open 
direct  communication  with  Pizarro,  and  to  further  the  extension  of 
his  own  influence.  The  usurper  would  listen  to  no  proposals  which 
did  not  favour  his  own  retention  of  supremacy.  He  sent  his  reply 
by  one  of  his  most  trust-worthy  adherents,  Lorenzo  de  Aldana,  wlio 
was  commissioned  to  represent  to  the  Spanish  court  the  state  of  the 
country,  the  existing  quiet  in  the  province,  and  the  satisfaction  of 
the  inhabitants  at  their  condition  and  prospects,  should  the  governor 
be  confirmed  in  his  powers  by  the  emperor. 

Arriving  at  Panama,  Aldana  had  audience  with  the  commissioner, 
and  was  so  awed  by  the  extent  of  his  legitimate  authority,  and 
struck  by  his  wisdom  and  moderation,  that  l.e  speedily  abandoned 
his  master's  cause,  and  joined  the  partisans  of  Gasca,  Ilinojosa  and 
the  principal  naval  commanders  at  Panama  followed  this  example, 
and  on  the  19th  of  November,  1546,  the  whole  fleet  was  publicly 
and  formally  placed  at  the  disposal  of  Gasca,  and  its  officers,  receiv- 
ing anew  their  conimiasions  from  his  hands,  took  oaths  of  obligation 
to  the  crown. 

The  president's  course  was  now  |)lain.     He  began  to  collect  forces 


fe 


THE   CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY   OF  PEBU. 


265 


for  open  hostilities,  using  his  unlimited  powers  to  pledge  the  gov- 
ernment for  the  jSpayment  of  the  necessary  loans,  and  to  secure 
prospective  remuneration  to  his  soldiers.  Requisitions  were  also 
made  upon  the  governors  of  Mexico  and  the  provinces  of  Central 
America  for  aid  in  the  anticipated  conflict.  The  adherents  of 
Fizarro  began  to  lose  heart,  and  many  deserted  his  cause  to  join  the 
rising  fortunes  of  the  royal  party.  In  the  southern  provinces,  Diego 
de  Centeno,  who  had  been  defeated,  and  driven  to  concealment  by 
Carbajal,  again  collected  his  scattered  followers,  and  by  a  sudden 
movement  made  himself  master  of  Cuzco.  After  receiving  a  power- 
ful accession  to  his  force  from  the  multitudes  who  feared  the  con- 
sequences of  adhering  to  the  popular  ruler  in  his  contest  with  the 
crown,  or  who  now  dared  for  the  first  time  to  avow  their  loyal  senti- 
ments, he  posted  himself  by  Lake  Titicaca. 

Pizarro's  chief  counsellors  and  ofl&cers,  at  this  period,  were  his 
lieutenant,  Carb^al,  and  Cepeda,  one  of  the  judges  who  had  come 
over  from  Spain  as  the  coadjutors  of  the  unfortunate  Nunez.  The 
first  of  these,  generally  as  prudent  in  council  as  savage  and  remorse- 
less in  war,  advised  compliance  with  the  royal  ofiers;  the  other, 
feeling  himself,  perhaps,  too  deeply  implicated  in  the  overthrow  and 
death  of  the  viceroy,  (especially  when  considered  in  reference  to  his 
own  position  under  the  rule  of  that  officer,)  to  hope  for  a  share  in  the 
promised  amnesty,  counselled  resistance  to  the  last.  Gonzalo's  own 
ambition  and  pride  of  office  inclined  him  to  the  more  independent 
and  hazardous  course :  he  therefore  devoted  his  utmost  energies  to 
the  arming  and  recruiting  of  his  diminished  forces  at  the  capital. 

Upon  the  approach  of  a  portion  of  the  hostile  fleet,  under  the 
command  of  his  faithless  emissary,  Aldana,  Pizarro  withdrew  from 
Lima,  and  marched  to  the  port  of  Arequipa.  His  army  was  by  this 
time  80  reduced  by  continual  desertions,  that  ii  numbered  only  about 
five  hundred  men.  Aldana  was  received  by  the  inhabitants  of  the 
capital  and  its  vicinity  with  loyal  demonstrations  of  welcome ;  and 
still  greater  enthusiasm  awaited  the  landing  of  his  superior,  which 
took  place  at  Tumbez  about  the  middle  of  June.  Gasca  proceeded 
to  Xauxa,  where  he  established  his  head-quarters. 

Pizarro,  in  order  to  give  time  for  the  recruiting  of  his  forces,  or 
hopeful  of  some  change  in  popular  favour,  could  he  postpone  a  con- 
test with  an  enemy  so  much  his  superior,  resolved  to  march  into 
Chili.  He  therefore  opened  negotiations  with  Centeno,  who  was  in 
occupation  of  the   mountain  passes  with  a  vastly  superior  force. 


f 


2ud 


rut  PEOl'I.E'g   UUUK  UF   HISTOBY. 


That  staunch  loyalist  was  too  well  aware  of  his  advantage  to  allow 
the  enemy  to  CBcapo  from  the  toils  by  which  he  »wa8  surrounded. 
lie  would  listen  to  nothing  but  an  unconditional  surrender,  offering, 
however,  liis  personal  influence  to  propitiate  the  clemency  of  the 
government  in  behalf  of  those  who  should  lay  dov  n  their  arms. 
Pizarro,  therefore,  collected  all  his  energies  for  a  desperate  and 
decisive  struggle. 

Near  the  small  town  of  Huarina,  by  Lake  Titicaca,  he  was  met  by 
Centeno  on  the  26th  of  October,  1647.  The  latter  was  in  command 
of  about  a  thousand  men,  while  Pizarro's  whole  force  was  less  than 
five  hundred.  When  the  two  armies  joined  battle,  the  cavalry  of 
the  royalists  completely  overpowered  and  routed  that  of  their  oppo- 
nents, and  the  fortune  of  the  day  seemed  for  the  time  decided  in 
their  favour.  Carbajal,  however,  maintained  his  position  with  the 
little  band  of  musqueteers,  and  having  received  and  successfully 
repelled  the  charge  of  Centeno's  infantry,  was  prepared  to  oppose 
the  attack  of  the  formidable  body  of  cavalry.  Afler  various  disor- 
derly and  futile  attempts  to  break  the  squares  into  which  the  enemy 
were  formed,  and  after  sustaining  heavy  loss  from  the  constant  fire 
kept  up  from  within  the  protecting  lines  of  spearmen,  the  royalists 
were  thrown  into  utter  confusion,  and  were  driven  from  the  field. 

Elated  by  so  brilliant  and  decisive  a  victory,  and  justly  deeming 
that  the  prestige  of  the  achievement  would  rdassure  the  minds  of 
those  who  at  heart  favoured  his  cause,  Pizarro  abandoned  his  inten- 
tion of  seeking  an  a.sylum  in  Chili,  and  marched  to  Cuzco.  He  was 
received  with  enthusiasm  by  the  inhabitants,  and  having  taken  up 
his  quarters  in  the  city,  he  resolved  to  await  the  arrival  of  rt'iii- 
forcements  from  the  neighbouring  districts,  and  to  strike  only  where 
a  favourable  opportunity  might  present,  or  when  he  should  be  com- 
pelled by  the  movementa  of  the  enemy. 


TUB  0ONQUK8T  AND  HI8T0BY  Of  PERU. 


267 


-•         v*  CHAPTER   XL-*  '••  "•  ' 

OiVTIOVS   X0TIKBMT8  OP  0A8CA.  —  HIS   MAROU  TO  OUZOO.- 
BLOODLESS   TICTORT    AT   XAQUIXAOUANA, — EXECUTION   01 
OARBAJAL  AND  PIZARRO.  —  VISE  ADMINISTRATION 
01   OASGA. — SUBSEQUENT  DISORDERS. — THB  ,, 

COLONIAL   SYSTEM. — THEMITA    AND    RE-        .   , 
PARTIMIBNTO. — INSURRBCTION  OP  1780.  "\ 


I 
i 


I 


The  defeat  of  Iluarina  was  a  severe  blow  to  Gasca,  but  that  pru< 
dent  officer  evinced  his  usual  deliberation  and  forethought  in  retriev- 
ing his  fortunes.  Instead  of  rashlj  pressing  on  to  Cuzco,  although 
hia  force  was  still  greatly  superior  to  that  of  the  enemy,  he  encamped 
for  several  months  in  the  province  of  Andagnaylas,  awaiting  the 
arrival  of  fresh  troops,  and  a  more  favourable  season  for  crossing  the 
mountains.  His  principal  military  subordinates,  to  whom  he  com- 
mitted  the  practical  superintendence  of  the  movements  of  the  army, 
and  to  whose  Judgment  he  submitted  in  matters  of  pure  military 
science,  were  Ilinojosa,  Alvarado,  Centeno,  Benalcazar,  and  tho  eel* 
ebrated  Pedro  de  Yaldivia,  who  was  at  that  time  in  the  country 
engaged  in  gntherini;  fresh  adventurers  to  aid  in  the  extension  of 
his  conquests  in  Chili. 

In  the  month  of  March,  1548,  the  royal  forces  commenced  their 
march  for  tho  ancient  capital,  and  after  successfully  encountering 
the  perils  and  fatigues  incident  to  a  passage  of  the  mountains  and 
torrents  which  intervened,  they  crossed  tho  Apurimac,  and  prepared 
for  a  descent  upon  the  city.  Pizarro,  with  what  forces  he  could 
muster,  on  the  approach  of  Gasoa,  took  up  a  strong  position,  in 
the  valley  of  Xaquixaguano,  five  leagues  from  Cuzco.  As  the  army 
of  the  president,  afler  a  night  of  sleepless  vigilance,  w&3  preparing 
to  give  battle,  the  necessity  for  an  attack  was  singularly  obviated. 
The  followers  of  Pizarro,  disheartened  at  the  prospect  of  contending 
with  a  superior  force,  and  feeling  at  last  a  full  conviction  of  their 
desperate  estate  in  case  of  defeat,  and  their  uncertain  position  should 
victory  crown  their  efforts,  began  to  desert  in  entire  battalions,  and 
to  throw  themselves  upon  the  clemency  of  Gasca.  The  first  to  set 
this  example  ojxjnly  was  the  faithless  Cepeda,  who,  while  riding  in 
Vol.  III.— 17 


253 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


advance  of  his  troops,  suddenly  put  spurs  to  his  horse,  and  notwith- 
standing a  hot  pursuit,  made  his  v/ay  in  safety  to  the  enemy.       i 

A  complete  panic  and  confusion  presently  ensued:  the  army  of 
GoLzalo  was  dispersed  without  a  battle,  and  the  rebellious  chief 
delivered  himself  up  a  prisoner.  Those  of  his  followers  who  feared 
at  the  last  moment  to  trust  to  the  mercy  of  the  president,  scattered 
in  various  directions,  and  sought  safety  in  flight.  His  old  and  faith- 
ful lieutenant,  Carbajal,  was  seized  by  some  of  his  own  party,  and 
carried  captive  to  the  enemy's  camp.  This  veteran  chief  was  no  less 
than  eighty-four  years  old,  but  although  his  body  was  enfeebled  by 
th<j  infirmities  of  age,  his  mind  retained  all  its  original  energy  and 
stern  determination.  "When  condemned  to  the  disgraceful  death  of 
a  traitor,  he  manifested  no  emotion,  but  submitted  to  his  fate  with 
the  utmost  apparent  indiflerence,  maintaining  to  the  last  the  vein  of 
dry,  coarse  humour  which  was  ever  habitual  to  him.  The  most 
remarkable  circumstance  attendant  upon  his  execution,  considering 
the  age  in  which  he  lived,  was  his  refusal  to  make  confession,  or 
to  receive  ghostly  consolation  from  the  priests.  He  asseverated  that 
he  had  nothing  on  his  conscience  except  his  remissness  in  leaving  a 
debt  of  a  half-real  unpaid  to  a  shopkeeper  of  Seville.  While  being 
drawn  in  a  hurdle  to  the  fatal  spot,  "the  priest  who  went  with  him 
exhorted  him  to  recommend  himself  to  God,  and  to  say  the  Pater 
Koster  and  the  Ave  Maria,  and  they  say  that  he  said,  *  Pater  Noster,' 
and  'Ave  Maria,'  and  tiiat  he  would  not  speak  another  word." 

Gonzalo  Pizarro  also  perished  by  the  hands  of  the  executioner, 
but  without  the  circumstances  of  indignity  which  attended  the  death 
of  his  lieutenant.  He  spent  the  short  interval  between  his  con- 
demnation and  death  in  devout  exercises,  and  met  his  fate  with  such 
calm  intrepidity  that  a  strong  feeling  of  sympathy  was  excited  in  the 
breasts  of  the  stern  and  rude  soldiery  in  attendance.  The  recollection 
of  the  important  part  enacted  by  him  during  the  war  of  the  Conquest 
was  also  remembered  with  respect  and  gratitude  by  those  whose 
prosperity  had  been  secured  by  the  overthrow  of  the  ancient  dynasty. 

A  number  of  Pizarro's  inferior  officers  were  also  put  to  death ;  and 
banishment,  confiscation  of  estates,  and  the  fate  of  the  galley-slave, 
sternly  awarded  to  others,  served  to  convince  the  nation  that  the 
new  government,  if  mild  and  clement  to  the  loyal  or  submissive, 
could  execute  rigorous  justice  upon  offenders. 

The  manner  in  which  Gasca  reduced  the  unsettled  affairs  of  the 
{»untry  to  order  and  system;    his  cautious  and  conciliatory,  but 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


259 


eflfective  legislation ;  and  his  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  oppressed  natives 
of  the  soil,  gained  him  universal  respect.  With  every  opportunity 
for  the  acquisition  of  wealth,  and  the  advancement  of  schemes  for 
personal  ambition,  he  strove  only  for  the  welfare  of  the  colony  com- 
mitted to  his  charge,  and  for  the  honour  and  supremacy  of  the 
crown.  "When  his  mission  was  fully  accomplished,  he  voluntarily 
relinquished  his  responsible  office,  and  returned  to  Spain.  His 
economical  administration  had  freed  the  colony  from  the  debts  in- 
curred in  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  and  he  took  over  with  him  a 
large  sum  of  money,  as  an  earnest  of  the  renewal  of  the  long-discon- 
tinued tribute  to  the  royal  treasury. 

His  distinguished  services  and  unequalled  self-denial  met  with 
their  appropriate  reward,  in  securing  the  good- will  of  his  countrymen 
and  the  favour  of  the  emperor.  He  was  made  bishop  of  Palencia, 
and  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life  in  tranquillity  and  ease. 

The  order  and  regularity  immediately  attend.. -.o  upon  the  prudent 
administration  of  Gasca  was  at  various  subsequent  periods  inter- 
rupted by  the  ambitious  designs  of  discontented  adventurers,  and  by 
the  bitterness  of  opposing  factions;  but  the  authority  of  Spain  was 
effectively  maintained  over  Peru  until  the  general  uprising,  which 
resulted  in  the  emancipation  of  all  her  American  continental  depend- 
encies. Peace  was  most  effectually  secured  by  the  system  of  mutual 
destruction  which  the  contending  political  parties  alternately  meted 
out  to  their  opponents — a  system  which  of  necessity  soon  finds  its 
end  in  treaty,  in  submission,  or  in  extermination. 

During  the  long  continuance  of  Spanish  rule  in  America,  sub- 
stantially the  same  system  of  government  was  maintained  throughout 
the  colonies.  The  greatest  jealousy  of  foreigners  characterized  every 
enaotment  respecting  trade  and  intercourse  with  other  nations,  and 
every  thing  was  so  ordered  as  to  prevent  any  thing  like  independent 
advancement  on  the  part  of  the  colonial  provinces.  The  interests 
of  the  parent-country  were  subserved  by  all  manner  of  monopolies 
and  restrictive  provisions,  that  the  productions  of  Spain  might  fiiid 
a  continual  market,  and  that  exhorbitant  returns  of  the  precious 
metals  might  continue  to  flow  into  her  coffers  from  the  treasures  of 
tlie  New  World. 

To  facilitate  the  working  of  the  mines,  as  well  as  to  secure  a  con- 
li nuance  of  loyalty  on  the  part  of  the  colonists,  no  further  effective 
jirovisions  were  made  for  the  liberty  and  rights  of  the  miserable 


Tl^T     O 


iilnv*      /^y^v^etA*'??^^?/^ 


11„J  *i «f\f:f-  » 


lij  s  regular  conscripiion,  caiiuu  tuo     luiiu,    uuc-ticveiiiu 


n 


260 


THE  PKOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


of  the  Indian  population,  fiom  the  age  of  eighteen  to  fifty,  was  con- 
stantly kept  employed  in  the  mines.  The  term  of  service  for  each 
division  was  nominally  six  months,  although  frequently  extended  ■ 
and  so  severe  was  the  labour  enforced,  and  so  insufficient  the  support 
provided  by  their  task-masters,  that  a  large  majority  of  the  labourers 
are  said  to  have  perished  before  the  expiration  of  a  single  period  of 
service.  The  introduction  of  spirituous  liquors  also  proved  as  disas- 
trous as  in  all  other  portions  of  America,  to  the  native  population  ■ 
and  from  the  combined  efiects  of  this  destructive  agent,  of  labour  in 
the  mines,  and  of  that  deadly  pestilence  the  small-pox,  the  decrease 
of  the  Indian  inhabitants  of  Peru,  during  the  two  centuries  succeed- 
ing the  Conquest,  is  computed  by  millions. 

One  grievous  form  of  imposition  practised  upon  the  natives,  waa 
that  known  as  the  system  of  the  repartimiento.  This  was  a  species 
of  monopoly,  by  which  the  Spanish  governors,  or  corregidors  of  the 
different  districts  were  empowered  to  furnish  the  Indians  with  Eu- 
ropean commodities.  These  they  were  compelled  to  receive,  and  to 
pay  for  at  exhorbitant  prices,  whether  in  want  of  the  articles  fur- 
nished or  not.  lUis  said  that  the  plan  was  first  devised  with  the 
benevolent  intention  of  securing  the  ignorant  natives  from  the 
deceptions  practised  by  unprincipled  traders,  but  that  the  temptation 
to  take  advantage  of  their  exclusive  privilege  proved  too  strong  for 
the  integrity  of  those  to  whom  the  charge  was  committed,  until  the 
whole  system  became  one  of  barefaced  fraud  and  oppression. 

In  addition  to  the  great  wrongs  sanctioned  by  law,  the  Indians 
had  none,  or  the  most  insufficient  redress,  for  every  species  of 
enormity  which  was  privately  inflicted  upon  them  by  the  usurpers 
of  the  soil.  For  more  than  two  centuries  they  laboured  under  this 
insupportable  tyranny  without  any  combined  effijrt  to  obtain  their 
freedom.  An  unsuccessful  revolt  took  place,  indeed,  in  1741,  among 
several  of  the  diJOferent  tribes.  At  last,  in  the  year  1780,  tlie  cacique 
of  Tungasuca,  Jos^  Gabriel  Condorcanqui,  claiming  descent  from 
Tupac  Amaru,  the  son  of  the  (nca  Manco,  stood  forth  as  the  cham- 
pion of  his  people.  Multitudes  of  the  natives  thronged  to  enlist 
under  his  command,  i.ud  in  the  battles  which  ensued,  displayed  all 
the  energy  and  courage  of  their  ancestors.  More  experienced  in 
European  warfare  than  these,  they  were  not  subdued  without  much 
bloodshed.  The  very  women  took  part  in  these  contests,  and  evinced 
surprising  bravery  and  determination.  The  death  of  their  leader, 
who  was  taken  prisoner,  and,  t(>gcther  with  hi.s  wife  and  children. 


THE  CONQUEar  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


261 


put  to  death  with  barbarous  crur  gave  no  chedk  to  the  rebellion. 
A  guerilla  warfare  was  still  wagtu  with  unremitting  perseverance, 
and  a  nephew  of  Condorcanqui,  named  Andres,  collected  a  sufficient 
foice  to  beset  the  town  of  Sorata.  The  place  was  defended  by  an 
earthen  embankment,  behind  which  artillery  was  stationed.  To 
eflfect  a  breach,  a  large  body  of  water  was  collected  by  dams  upon 
an  adjoining  height,  and  suddenly  let  loose  upon  the  defences. 
Through  the  opening  thus  made,  the  Indian  warriors  poured  with 
the  utmost  fury,  and  revenged  the  murder  of  their  inca  by  an  indis- 
criminate slaughter.  It  is  said  that  of  the  twenty  thousand  inhabit- 
ants of  the  town,  none  of  the  males  were  spared  except  the  priests. 

Notwithstanding  this  brilliant  success,  the  Indian  commanders 
were  not  sufficiently  skilled  in  the  science  of  war  or  government  to 
take  advantage  of  their  position.  They  were  betrayed  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy  by  some  of  their  own  people  who  had  been  won 
over  by  bribes,  and  the  Spaniards  speedily  reestablished  their  power 
over  the  country.  In  consequence  of  this  rebellion,  however,  the 
odious  monopoly  of  the  repartimiento  was  done  away  with. 


COMMENCEMENT  OP  THE  REVOLUTION. — INVASION   BY    SAN 

MARTIN. — OCCUPATION  OP  LIMA. — INDEPENDENCE 

PROCLAIMED. — REVERSES  OP  THE  PATRIOTS. — 

ARRIVAL  OP  BOLIVAR  IN  PERU. 


The  great  struggle  for  independence  in  the  Spanish  provinces  of 
South  America  had  been  elsewhere,  for  the  most  part,  crowned  with 
success  before  Peru  became  the  theatre  for  important  action.  Here 
the  Spaniards  maintained  possession  of  their  last  stronghdld  upon 
the  continent,  and,  but  for  assistance  from  the  neighbouring  inde- 
j)endent  provinces,  there  would  hardly  have  appeared  a  prospect  of 
overthrowing  the  viceroyal  government. 

In  the  earlier  period  of  the  revolution,  in  October,  1810,  an  army 
from  Buenos  Ay  res,  under  command  of  Colonel  Antonio  de  Balcarce, 
penetrated  into  Upper  Peru,  and  gained  important  victories  over  the 
royalists  at  Cotagarta  and  Tupiaza.    This  officer  took  up  his  quaiters. 


^ 


262 


TIIK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY, 


with  a  force  of  some  four  thousand  men,  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Titi- 
caca,  and  maintained  possession  of  the  conquered  territory  until 
the  following  summer,  when  he  was  in  turn  defeated  by  the  Spanish 
troops  under  Goyeneche,  who  attacked  him  unexpectedly  during  the 
continuance  of  a  truce.  Balcarce's  failure  is  attributed  in  no  small 
measure  to  the  violence  and  recklessness  of  his  civil  associate,  Castelli. 

In  the  month  of  August,  1820,  independence  having  been  estab- 
lished in  Chili,  an  army  of  between  four  and  five  thousand  men  was 
assembled  at  Valparaiso  for  the  purpose  of  breaking  up  of  the  royal- 
ist strongholds  of  Peru,  and  of  freeing  that  province  from  the  domin- 
ion of  Spain.  The  command  was  held  by  General  Jose  de  San 
Martin,  the  emancipator  of  Chili,  to  whose  exertions  the  expedition 
was  mainly  attributable.  Such  vessels  of  war  as  could  be  procured, 
were  fitted  out  and  placed  under  comni.  nd  of  Lord  Cochrane.  In  the 
month  following,  the  whole  force  was  landed  and  quartered  at  Pisco, 
on  the  Peru\ian  coast,  without  opposition  from  the  royalist  forces, 
which  retreated  to  Lima,  about  one  hundred  miles  northward. 

An  attempt  at  negotiation  having  failed,  the  army  of  invasion  was 
again  in  motion  in  the  month  of  October.  The  naval  force  anchored 
olF  Callao,  where,  on  the  night  of  November  5th,  Lord  Cochrane, 
commanding  in  person,  succeeded  in  cutting  out  and  capturing  the 
Spanish  frigate  Esmeralda,  which  lay  under  the  protection  of  the 
guns  of  the  fort,  aAd  in  company  with  a  number  of  smaller  armed 
vessels.  This  exploit  is  considered  as  one  of  the  most  brilliant 
achievements  of  the  kind  on  record. 

The  main  body  of  Chilian  troops  was  transported  to  Iluara,  about 
seventy-five  miles  north  of  the  capital,  while  a  division,  under  Gen- 
eral Arenales,  was  marched  into  the  interior,  with  the  intention  of 
effecting  a  junction  with  the  principal  force  by  land.  On  the  route 
this  commander  defeated  a  superior  force  of  the  royalists,  under  the 
Irish  officer  General  O'lleilly.  The  prospects  of  the  patriots  grew 
every  day  brighter.  They  gained  large  accessions  of  recruits  from 
those  of  the  inhabitants  who  favoured  a  revolution,  and  it  was  plain 
that  the  great  body  of  the  people  hailed  their  anival  with  tlie  most 
joyful  anticipations.  On  the  8d  of  December,  an  entire  regiment, 
the  Spanish  battalion  of  Numancia,  consisting  in  great  measure  of 
Columbians,  joined  the  invaders. 

As  San  Martin,  after  some  months'  delay  at  Iluara,  advanced  upon 
Limn,  the  city  was  thrown  into  tlie  utmost  confusion.  I'he  Spanish 
amhoritics  Ibund  it  necessary  to  evacuate  the  place,  and  the  inhabit- 


TUE   CONQUEST  AND   UI8T0RY  OF  PERU. 


263 


ants,  in  a  general  panic,  and  uncertain  as  to  what  was  to  take  place, 
began  to  fly  with  their  effects  towards  Callao  and  other  places  of 
supposed  security.  Throughout  the  night  preceding  the  evacuation 
by  the  Spanish  troops,  the  narrow  streets  were  nearly  impassable 
from  the  multitude  of  vehicles  in  which  the  terrified  inhabitants 
were  conveying  away  their  efifecta.  Captain  Basil  Hall,  who  was 
upon  the  spot,  says:  "For  an  hour  or  two  after  the  viceroy's  de- 
parture, the  streets  were  filled  with  fugitives;  but  by  mid-day, 
scarcely  an  individual  was  to  be  seen ;  and  in  the  course  of  the 
afternoon,  I  accompanied  one  of  the  English  merchants  during  a 
walk  of  more  than  a  mile  through  the  most  populous  parts  of  Lima, 
without  meeting  a  single  individual:  the  doors  were  all  barred,  the 
window-shutters  closed,  and  it  really  seemed  'some  vast  city  of 
the  dead.'" 

The  old  Marquis  of  Montemird,  who  had  been  left  in  authority, 
called  together  the  principal  inhabitants,  and  after  some  consultation, 
with  the  assent  of  the  town  council,  an  invitation  was  extended  to 
San  Martin  to  occupy  the  city,  nominally  for  the  purpose  of  pro- 
tecting the  inhabitants  from  a  suspected  uprising  of  the  slaves,  from 
the  Indian  allies  of  the  patriots  who  threatened  a  descent  from  with- 
out, and  from  a  lawless  mob  of  the  lower  orders  within  the  walls. 
The  general  entered  the  city  on  the  12th  of  July,  1821,  unaccom- 
panied by  his  army,  and  experienced  little  difficulty  in  satisfying 
the  terrified  inhabitants  as  to  his  good  faith  and  the  honesty  of  his 
intentions.  All  wont  on  prosperously  for  the  cause,  and  on  the  28th 
the  independence  of  Peru  was  formally  proclaimed,  amid  the  great- 
est exhibition  of  enthusiasm  on  the  part  of  the  populace.  On  the 
3d  of  the  ensuing  month  San  Martin  assumed  the  title  of  Protector 
of  Peru. 

No  important  military  movements  took  place  during  a  considerable 
subsequent  period.  The  fortress  at  Callao  remained  in  possession  of 
the  royalists,  whither  the  division  under  Canterac  the  viceroy,  quar- 
tered at  Xauxa,  was  marched  in  the  latter  part  of  August.  These 
troops  were  soon  afterwards  withdrawn,  and  the  stronghold,  left 
under  command  of  General  La  Mar,  capitulated  to  the  protector  on 
the  21st  of  September.  The  independent  army  remained  at  Lima, 
for  the  most  part  unemployed,  during  a  number  of  months  subse- 
quent to  these  events,  and  their  presence  began  to  be  felt  as  a  burden 
by  the  inhabitants.  In  April,  1822,  a  severe  reverse  was  felt  in  the 
surprise  and  capture,  by  Canterac,  of  a  very  considerable  body  of 


264 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOBY. 


the  revolutionary  forces,  at  lea.  More  than  a  thousand  prisoners 
were  taken,  and  a  great  amount  of  arms  and  military  stores  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  royalists.  v    < 

An  interview  took  place  in  the  month  of  July,  of  this  year 
between  the  Protector  and  the  great  champion  of  freedom  in  South 
America,  Bolivar,  then  in  the  full  pride  of  success  in  the  northern 
provinces.  The  result  of  the  meeting  was  the  augmentation  of  the 
force  at  Lima  by  two  thousand  Columbian  troops.  During  San 
Martin's  absence  the  tyranny  of  his  minister,  Monteagudo,  who  made 
the  deputy  protector,  the  Marquis  of  Truxillo,  a  mere  tool  for  the 
execution  of  his  private  projects,  excited  an  outbreak,  which  was 
only  quelled  by  the  arrest  and  removal  of  the  offending  party. 

In  the  succeeding  month  the  first  independent  congress  was 
assembled  at  the  capital,  and  San  Martin,  having  resigned  his  author- 
ity, soon  after  took  his  departure  for  Chili.  Congress  appointed  a 
junta  of  three  persons  to  discharge  the  duties  of  the  executive. 
Under  this  administration  the  affairs  of  the  new  republic  fell  into 
great  disorder.  A  miserably  futile  attempt,  by  sea  and  land,  against 
the  royalists  in  the  southern  provinces,  created  great  public  discon- 
tent, and  on  the  26th  of  February,  1823,  the  principal  officers  of  the 
army,  in  a  remonstrance  to  Congress,  demanded  the  appointment  of 
Colonel  Jose  de  la  Riva  Aguero  as  president  After  some  opposition, 
that  body  complied  with  the  proposition,  backed  as  it  was  by  all  the 
real  power  of  the  republic,  and  Riva  Aguero  was  proclaimed  accord- 
ingly. General  Santa  Cruz,  a  Peruvian,  and  partly  of  Indian  descent, 
then  second  in  command,  shortly  after,  upon  the  departure  of  Are- 
nales  for  Chili,  assumed  the  position  of  commander-in-chief  of  the 
army.  A  second  expedition  to  the  southward  against  the  royalists 
of  the  Puertos  Intermedios,  left  the  capital  insufficiently  guarded, 
although  three  thousand  additional  troops  had  been  marched  to  the 
city  by  the  Columbian  general,  Sucre.  Canter&c  seized  the  opportu- 
nity to  possess  himself  of  Lima,  and  with  nine  thousand  men,  on  the 
18th  of  June,  entered  that  city.  The  patriot  forces  were  insufficient 
to  make  any  effectual  resistance,  and  they  evacuated  the  capital  on 
the  approach  of  the  enemy. 

The  Congress,  holding  its  session  at  Callao,  now  invested  General 
Sucre  with  dictatorial  powers.  Upon  the  fortress  at  this  place,  Can- 
terac  was  unable  to  make  any  impression,  and  considering  it  useless 
to  inaintniu  jjossession  of  the  capital,  he  withdrew  his  troops  on  the 
ITih  of  the  succeeding  month  of  July.     The  division  of  the  patriot 


THE  CONQUEST  AND  HISTORY  OF  PERU. 


265 


forces  at  the  south  fared  no  bet|pr  than  that  which  had  preceded  it. 
A  disastrous  and  disorderly  retreat  before  the  royalists  resulted  in 
the  almost  entire  dissolution  of  the  army.  All  hopes  of  success  in 
the  enterprise  of  the  revolution  now  seemed  to  rest  upon  the  arrival 
of  foreign  assistance,  and  this  was  fortunately  at  hand.  Simon  Bol- 
ivar, the  liberator  of  Venezuela,  and  the  most  distinguished  of  the 
champions  of  freedom  in  South  America,  had  so  far  reduced  the 
affairs  of  the  recently  constituted  northern  staXm  to  order  and  security, 
that  he  was  enabled  to  turn  his  attention  to  the  distressed  condition 
of  the  Peruvian  patriots.  He  proceeded  at  once  to  the  scene  of  action, 
and  entered  Lima  on  the  Ist  of  September,  1828.  The  prestige  of 
bis  previous  brilliant  successes,  and  the  confidence  felt  in  his  abilities 
as  a  general  and  statesman,  gave  a  new  impetus  to  the  patriotic  cause. 
He  was  received  with  great  rejoicing,  and  was  at  once  invested  with 
supreme  power,  both  civil  and  military.  . 


i\ 


, 


r-  A 


CTTAPT'C'D      'Y'TTT 
JiilaCltirXJjM        lAtXXXa 

SUCCESSES  OF  THE  ROYALISTS. — MOVEMENTS  OF  THE  PATRIOT 
ARMI. — DECISIVE  VICTOR!  OF  ATACUCHO. — SIEGE  OF 
CALIAO. — BOLIVAR'S  ADMINISTRATION. — SUBSE- 
QUENT CONDITION  OF  THE  REPUBLIC. 


Upon  the  elevation  of  Bolivar  to  the  dictatorship,  his  first  care 
was  to  quiet  dissensions  in  his  own  party.  Biva  Agucro,  indignant 
at  his  removal  from  authority,  was  carrying  matters  with  a  high  hand 
in  Truxillo.  He  assembled  and  then  dissolved  the  congress,  ordering 
into  exile  those  who  remained  firm  to  their  former  decision.  As  he 
commanded  several  thousand  troops  from  the  northern  province,  his 
defection  presented  a  formidable  aspect.  Negotiation  proved  of  no 
avail,  but  by  the  treachery  of  some  of  his  own  people  he  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  soon  after  was  banished  from  the  country. 

In  February,  1824,  an  insurrection  of  the  garrison  at  Callao  resulted 
in  the  recapture  of  this  important  stronghold  by  the  Spaniards,  and 
a  few  weeks  later  the  capital  shared  the  Sitme  fate.  The  revolutionary 
congress  broke  up,  after  declaring  its  own  dissolution  and  the  con- 
firmation of  Bolivar's  authority  as  supreme  dictator.     This  gloomy 


p 


1^: 


266 


THE  PEOPLE'9-BOOK  OP  HISTORY. 


State  of  affairs  only  served  to  call  forth  the  full  energies  of  the  great 
general.  lie  had  under  his  command  about  ten  thousand  troops, 
the  majority  of  whom  were  Columbians,  stationed  near  Patavilca. 
The  available  forces  of  the  royalists  were  at  this  period  numerically 
far  superior  to  those  of  the  patriota,  but  confidence  in  the  tried  abil- 
ities  of  their  leader  more  than  compensated  the  latter  for  their  infe- 
riority in  numbers.  "There  was  a  charm,"  says  Miller,  "in  the 
name  of  Bolivar,  and  lie  was  looked  up  to  as  'the  only  man  capable 
of  saving  the  republic." 

The  army  of  the  royalists  was  quartered  at  Xauxa,  and  no  effort 
was  made  to  check  the  advance  of  the  independent  forces  until  they 
had  effected  the  dangerous  passage  of  the  mountains,  and  were  in  full 
march  for  Pasco.  Great  praise  is  awarded  to  General  Sucre,  the 
chief  of  the  staff",  for  the  admirable  forethought  and  prudent  precau- 
tions by  which  the  difficulties  of  this  march  were  met  and  safely 
overcome.  An  action,  which,  however,  did  not  become  general,  took 
place  on  the  plains  of  Junin,  in  which  the  patriots  gained  a  decided 
advantage,  further  increased  by  numerous  subsequent  desertions  from 
the  enemy. 

Bolivar  was  at  this  period  unwilling  to  risk  the  chances  of  a  deci- 
sive battle,  and  made  little  opposition  to  the  retreat  of  Canterac  to 
Cuzco.  At  Guamanga  a  month's  halt  was  made  by  the  patriots.  In 
October,  the  commander-in-chief,  supposing  that,  on  account  of  the 
season,  no  present  attempt  would  be  made  by  the  enemy,  returned 
to  the  coast,  having  directed  Sucre  to  take  up  his  quarters  at  Anda- 
huaylos  and  Abancay.  Contrary  to  Bolivar's  expectations,  the 
Spanish  viceroy,  having  effected  a  union  of  his  main  divisions  and 
made  the  most  strenuous  exertions  to  collect  an  overwhelming  force, 
now  recommenced  hostilities.  Sucre  was  placed  in  an  embarrassing 
position:  his  forces  were  greatly  reduced  by  sickness,  privation, 
skirmishes,  and  Indian  hostilities,  but  with  his  usual  military  skill 
he  so  ordered  counter  movements  and  retreats  that  the  greatly  supe- 
rior force  of  the  royalists  was  unable  to  attack  him  at  a  disadvantage. 

No  general  engagement  took  place  UJitil  the  9th  of  December, 
when  the  decisive  battle  of  Ayacucho,  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
in  its  details,  and  important  in  its  results  ever  fought  in  South 
America,  gave  a  death-blow  to  Spanish  power  in  Peru.  The  attack 
was  commenced  by  the  royalists,  under  command  of  the  viceroy. 
Their  nunibcrs  very  considerably  exceeded  those  of  the  patriots, 
being  set  down  at  over  nine  thousand,  while  those  of  the  latter  fell 


TU£  CONQUEST   AND   HISTORY   OF   PEKU. 


267 


short  of  six  thousand.  It  was  felt,  however,  by  all  that  the  fortune 
of  the  day  was  to  decide  the  fate  of  the  revolution,  and,  excited  by 
a  brief  but  inspiriting  address  from  their  commander,  the  patriots 
fought  with  a  firm,  though  impetuous  courage  that  proved  invincible. 

After  a  single  hour's  hard  fighting,  the  assailants  were  routed  and 
driven  back  to  the  heights  of  Condorcanqui,  where,  previous  to  the 
battle,  they  had  taken  a  position.  Their  loss  was  fourteen  hundred 
in  killed  and  seven  hundred  wounded.  The  patriots  lost  in  killed 
and  wounded  a  little  less  than  one  thousand.  Having  collected  what 
remained  of  his  scattered  forces,  Canterac  perceived  that  he  was  now 
outnumbered,  and  must  be  totally  overpowered.  Before  the  close 
of  the  day,  therefore  he  rode  down  in  person  to  the  patriot  encamp- 
ment, and  in  the  tent  of  the  commander  signed  a  capitulation.  His 
whole  remaining  army  became  prisoners  of  war,  and  by  the  terms  of 
the  capitulation  all  the  Spanish  forces  in  Peru  were  also  bound  to 
surrender.  These  requisitions  were  complied  with  by  the  garrisons 
at  Cuzco  and  Arequipa,  without  delay,  but  a  strong  body  of  Spanish 
troops  under  Olafieta,  in  Upper  Peru,  still  held  out.  These  were 
forced  to  yield  in  April,  1825,  their  leader  having  been  slain  in 
an  insurrection  of  his  own  followers. 

General  Eodil,  in  command  of  the  garrison  at  Callao,  still  obsti- 
nately maintained  his  position.  The  fortress  was  closely  invested 
by  sea  and  land;  but  such  was  the  strength  of  its  defences,  and  the 
determination  of  the  Spanish  commander,  that  it  was  not  reduced 
until  the  19th  of  January,  1826,  when  an  honourable  capitulation 
was  agreed  upon.  Throughout  this  long  interval  of  siege  the  garri- 
son and  the  royalist  citizens  who  had  sought  protection  in  this  last 
stronghold  of  Spain  upon  the  continent,  endured  every  extremity 
from  disease  and  famine.  The  greater  proportion  of  the  besieged 
had  perished  previous  to  the  surrender. 

Bolivar  was  still  clothed  with  the  powers  of  a  dictator  in  Peru, 
and  his  position  as  governor  of  Columbia  necessarily  strengthened 
and  extended  his  influence  and  authority  over  all  the  recently  eman- 
cipated territory  in  the  northern  portion  of  South  America.  He  was 
anxious  to  bring  about  the  adoption  by  the  Peruvians  of  the  civil 
code  known  as  the  Bolivian  Constitution,  but  it  proved  generally 
unsatisfactory.  While  he  remained  in  the  country,  it  is  said,  "  the 
people  overwhelmed  him  with  professions  of  gratitude,  and  addressed 
him  in  language  unsuitable  to  any  being  below  the  Deity."  A  reac- 
tion took  place  notwithstanding,  and  numbers  were  found  ready  to 


268 


THE  PBOPLK'8  noOK   OF  HISTORY. 


nccuse  this  truly  great  man  of  selfish  personal  ambition,  of  careless- 
ness for  the  true  interest  of  his  country,  and  to  impute  to  him  the 
most  unworthy  motives  in  all  his  efforts  for  colonial  independence. 

The  continued  presence  of  Columbian  troops,  who  remained  quar- 
tered at  Lima,  was  a  cause  of  great  complaint,  both  from  the  expense 
of  their  maintenance  and  the  prevalent  idea  that  they  were  kept  there 
to  suppress  any  free  and  independent  action  of  the  people,  and  to 
render  perpetual  those  extraordinary  powers  conferred  upon  the 
commander-in-chief  to  meet  the  exigencies  of  civil  war.  These 
apprehensions  were  removed,  during  the  year  following  the  reduction 
of  Callao,  by  the  revolt  and  removal  of  the  obnoxious  forces,  and  by 
the  election  of  General  La  Mar  to  the  presidency  of  Peru. 

The  government  had  not,  however,  the  elements  of  stability,  and 
the  country  remained  a  prey  to  factious  disturbance  and  civil  war. 
In  the  words  of  Commander  Wilkes,  the  history  of  the  state  "  may 
be  said  to  be  merged  in  biographical  memoirs  of  its  several  rulers, 
who  have,  without  an  exception,  acted  for  self-aggrandizement,  with- 
out ever  looking  to  the  benefit  of  their  country,  its  peace,  or  happi- 
ness. They  have,  in  their  public  decrees  and  acts,  been  lavish  and 
prodigal  of  the  words  honour,  liberty,  justice,  Ac,  in  order  to  extol 
themselves  and  decry  their  opponents;  yet,  without  exception,  the 
moment  they  have  attained  power,  they  have  pursued  the  very  course 
they  before  reprobated,  and  the  country  has  continued  to  suffer." 

At  the  present  time  Peru  is  involved  in  difliculties  with  Bolivia, 
threatening,  if  not  indeed  amounting  to  an  actual  state  of  war.  The 
limited  extent  of  available  sea-coast  belonging  to  the  latter  country 
renders  her  peculiarly  dependent  upon  Peru  for  commercial  facilities; 
and  among  other  offensive  acts,  a  heavy  transit  duty  has  been  levied 
on  all  goods  destined  for  Bolivia.  Possession  has  also  been  taken 
Df  the  port  of  Cobija  by  a  Peruvian  squadron. 


CHILI. 


CTTADT'CIDT 

IIFIDITION   OF  ALKAORO. — COMMISSION  OF  PEDRO  DE  TALDITU 

— ST.  JAOO  FOUNDED.  —  BATTLE  WITH   THE   MAP0CHINIAN8. 

—  EMBAR8T  OF  MIRANDA  AND  MONROT. — DESTRUCTION 

OF  THE  QUILLOTAN  MINERS.  —  TALDIYIA'S  MARCH 

SOUTHWARD. — THE   ARAUCANIANS. 


Elated  by  their  triumphant  successes  in  Peru,  and  with  their 
thirst  for  riches  unappensed  by  the  possession  of  the  untold  treasure 
of  the  inca,  the  Spanish  invaders  turned  their  attention  to  the  unex- 
plored sea-coast  at  the  south,  as  a  further  field  for  their  rapacity. 
The  command  of  an  expedition  to  Chili  was  accordingly  assumed 
by  Diego  de  Almagro,  the  comrade  in  arms  and  rival  of  Pizarro,  and 
a  well-appointed  band  of  adventurers,  numbering,  as  is  stated,  five 
hundred  and  seventy,  set  forth  under  his  guidance,  towards  the 
close  of  the  year  1535.  A  vast  army  of  native  Peruvians,  com- 
manded by  a  brother  of  the  new  inca,  accompanied  him,  hopeful  of 
better  fortune  under  a  European  leader,  than  their  countrymen  had 
experienced  in  former  times  when  engaged  in  war  with  the  Chilians. 
Instead  of  following  the  sea-coast,  Almagro  took  his  course  over  the 
mountains,  as  being  the  shortest  route,  a  choice  which  resulted  in 
terrible  destruction  to  his  forces.  The  snow-covered  Andes  were  to 
be  crossed  by  an  army  worn  out  by  long  marches,  insufficiently  pro- 
tected from  the  severities  of  the  season,  and  sufiering  from  starvation. 
Thousands  of  the  Peruvian  auxiliaries  and  about  one-fourth  of  the 
Spaniards  perished  during  the  passage. 

In  the  province  of  Copiapo,  one  of  those  formerly  brought  under 
Peruvian  dominion,  rest  and  supplies  of  provision  soon  recruited  the 
strength  and  spirit  of  the  army.     According  to  the  historians  of  the 


270 


TV       rr'^»tJt'8   BOOK  OF   HISTORY. 


cxptuno**'".  '^e  i;'*a.  >  troro  rcceivH  J-y  (iho  native  Chilians  with 
respect  MiKi  iHwpiulitv,  '  ^^  oppurtumU  was  n^/t  long  wanting  for  n 
full  dispUx  of  .Spniiiwh  ormelty  an'l  revenge.  Two  straggling  80]. 
(liers—  for  »hat  offence  is  not  known-  were  pnt  to  ujlh  at  Ounsoo 
nnd,  Ai  ^  I^swc...  to  the  inhabitui.'^.  Alrnagro  caused  Marcarulo  the 
ulnien,  ur  •'>>ef  of  Toquimbo,  together  with  more  than  twetity  of 
the  most  .  Me  persons  in  the  commun''*7,  to  be  seized  and 

burned  alive,  wiut<,(^»  the  shadow  of  trial,  or  even  the  accusation  of 
having  taken  part  in  the  offence.  It  appears  tliat  the  general 
conduct  of  the  Spaniards  on  their  march  was  replete  with  cruelty 
towards  the  harmless  peasantry  of  the  villages  through  which 
they  passed. 

Fresh  forces  had  now  arrived  from  Peru,  under  command  of 
Ro<lrigo  do  Orgonez,  and  Almagro  directed  his  course  southward 
through  the  rich  and  flourishing  districts  heretofore  rendered  tri- 
butary to  Peru.  Still  another  reinforcement  of  recruits  was  brought 
out  by  Juan  de  Rada,  who  bore  dispatches  to  the  commander-in-chiof 
of  a  nature  to  turn  the  current  of  his  thoughts  from  the  present 
theatre  of  warlike  operations.  These  contained  his  formal  appoint- 
njent,  by  the  crown  of  Spain,  to  the  government  of  a  large  dis- 
trict lying  next  south  of  that  already  confirmed  to  Pizarro.  Tlio 
imperfect  surveys  of  the  period  had  not  definitely  fixed  the  line  of 
division,  and  Almagro  was  assured,  by  letters  fiom  his  friends  in 
Peru,  that  the  capital  itself  laj  within  his  new'  -acquired  territory. 

That  active  soldier  would  not,  however,  immedirvtely  give  up  his 
dreams  of  conquest,  although  the  extravagant  hopes  of  hia  compan- 
ions in  adventure,  as  to  the  acquisition  of  further  treasures  in  gold 
and  silver,  were  by  this  time  greatly  damped.  He  pushed  on  to  the 
banks  of  the  Rio  Claro,  where  the  warlike  Promaucians  rallied  to 
oppose  his  further  advance.  To  their  astonishment,  the  Spaniards 
found  themselvf'f  engaged  with  an  enemy  whose  courage  and  forti- 
tude might  compare  favoTirably  with  that  of  veteran  soldiery.  Af>cr 
some  useless  fighting,  resulting  in  little  advantage  to  either  party, 
Almagro  was  not  unwilling  to  listen  to  tlie  entrert'^s  of  his  followers, 
that  an  enterprise  offering  little  prospect  of  any  thing  but  han' 
blow.s,  should  now  be  abandoned.  He  took  his  course  northward 
across  the  extensive  desert  of  Atacama,  avoiding  the  perils  of  a 
march  over  the  i.'i^untains,  but  exposed  to  great  suffering  from  the 
arid  and  inhospita.  nature  of  the  plains  to  V»e  traversed.  Ilia 
return  and  seizure  ol  ■    .^^    in  15^>8,  with  his  further  adventures  in 


OHILI. 


271 


tho  bloody  civil  wnr  wliicli  ensued,  and  his  final  Jufeat  and  execu- 
tion, have  been  mentioned  in  tho  history  of  Peru. 

Two  years  later,  after  tho  death  of  his  coiupauion  and  rival, 
rizttrr>)  commissioned  one  of  his  own  ofTlcers,  T'  'dro  dc  ViiMivia,  to 
K-ml  Mnother  expedition  into  Chili.  Do  IIoz,  \\...j  had  previously 
coino  6ut  from  Spain,  with  tho  royal  authority  to  undertake  this 
exploit,  was  assigned  a  subordinate  position. 

Valdivia,  profiting  by  tho  experience  of  Almagro,  conducted  his 
followers  across  the  Ardes  at  a  more  favourable  season  of  the  year 
than  that  chosen  by  L.a  predecessor.  lie  consequently  met  with 
trifling  loss  'ip-^  i  t'lo  "Jte.  Tho  company  sent  into  Chili  at  this 
time,  wai  r-':  ipc.td  of  different  materials  from  that  of  Almagro,  as 
it  was  ^>rop j'vJi.  k  form  a  permanent  settlement  at  some  favourable 
loint,  'I  Older  to  acquire  a  foothold  in  tho  country  for  further  con- 
(^acH  .nl  colonization.  There  were,  therefore,  in  addition  to  an  efli- 
cicnt  force  oi  tvvo  hundred  Spaniards  and  a  host  of  Peruvians,  a 
number  of  women  and  priests.  Domestic  animals  were  also  provided 
for  tho  use  of  the  infant  colony. 

The  news  of  the  overthrow  of  the  inca  had  by  this  time  reached 
Chili,  and  a  favourable  opportunity  seemed  presented  to  the  tri- 
butary provinces  for  a  recovery  of  their  former  independence.  The 
invaders  found  themselves  resisted  and  haraased  at  every  point,  but 
as  no  united  effort  vvas  made  by  the  inhabitants  of  different  districts, 
tlicy  were  enabled  to  force  their  way  through  tho  provinces  of 
Copiapo,  Coquimbo,  Quillota,  and  Melipilla.  At  Mapocho,  the  fer- 
tility and  beauty  of  the  country  induced  the  commander  to  establish 
his  first  settlement  upon  the  bank  of  the  river  which  bears  the  name 
of  the  province.  The  city  of  St.  Jago  was  accordingly  founded  on 
the  24th  of  February,  1541. 

Mapocho  was  one  of  the  most  populous  provinces  of  Chili,  and 
the  inhabitants  6j)eedily  exhibited  their  determination  to  expel  the 
intruders.  The  Spanish  commander  having  learned  of  an  intended 
attack,  seized  several  of  the  Mapochinian  chiefs,  and  took  his  posi- 
tion with  a  botiy  of  cavalry,  upon  the  bank  of  the  river  Cochapoal, 
to  j.icvent  their  subjects  from  effecting  a  union  with  the  natives  of 
the  adjoining  province.  "The  Mapochinians,"  says  Molina,  *'  taking 
advantage  of  the  departure  of  the  general,  fell  upon  the  colony  with 
inconceivable  fury,  burned  the  halfbuilt  houses,  and  assailed  the 
citadel,  wherein  the  inhabitants  had  taken  refuge,  upon  all  sides. 
Wliile  they  defended  themselves  valiantly,  a  woman,  named  Inez 


it 


1 


272 


THK   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


IW'^ 


Suarez,  animated  with  a  spirit  more  cruel  than  courageous,  seized 
an  axe,  and  beat  out  the  brains  of  the  captive  chiefs,  who  had  at- 
tempted to  break  their  fetters  and  regain  their  liberty."  The  return 
of  Valdivia,  with  the  cavalry,  turned  the  scale,  and  after  the  slaughter 
of  an  immense  number  of  native  warriors,  the  survivors  fled  to  the 
mountains.  From  these  places  of  retreat,  for  years  thereafter,  they 
sallied  forth  to  annoy  the  Spaniards  and  prevent  their  obtaining 
supplies.  The  country  around  St.  Jago,  which  had  been  the  garden 
of  Chili,  was  now  deserted  and  uncultivated,  as  the  colonists  were 
unable  to  extend  their  agricultural  operations  beyond  the  bounds 
protected  by  their  fort.  Great  suflFering  ensued  from  want  of  suffi- 
cient and  wholesome  food. 

A  new  source  of  wealth  was  finally  developed  by  the  opening  of 
gold  mines  in  the  valley  of  Quillota,  a  region  to  which  Valdivia's 
attention  had  been  directed  by  the  reports  of  the  natives.  Unfor- 
tunately for  the  convenience  and  interest  of  the  city,  it  hpd  no 
navigable  communication  with  the  sea;  but  to  secure  a  means  of 
intercourse  with  Peru,  a  vessel  was  built  at  the  debouchement  of  the 
river  Chile.  To  excite  further  interest  in  the  colony,  the  governor, 
Valdivia,  commissioned  two  oflicers  of  his  band,  Alonzo  Monroy 
and  Pedro  Miranda,  with  six  associates,  and  an  escort  of  thirty 
mounted  men,  to  proceed  by  land  to  Peru.  The  trappings  and  stir 
rups  of  the  ambassadors  were  directed  to  be  made  of  gold,  as  an 
ostentatious  display  of  wealth,  calculated  to  attract  the  attention  of 
fresh  adventurers.  This  party  was  attacked  on  the  road  by  a  body  of 
native  archers,  led  by  Coteo,  an  officer  of  the  ulmen  of  Copiapo,  and 
every  man  was  slain  except  the  two  envoys.  These  were  taken 
before  the  chief,  grievously  wounded,  and  would  have  been  promptly 
put  to  death  but  for  the  intercession  of  the  ulmena,  or  wife  of  V\q 
ulmen.  This  kind-hearted  woman  took  the  utmost  care  of  her  pro- 
tdgds,  and,  hfiving  healed  their  wounds,  manifested  her  confidence 
in  their  good  faith  by  entrusting  them  with  the  instruction  of  her 
son  in  the  art  of  horsemanship.  The  two  Spaniards,  perceiving  that 
a  way  of  escape  lay  open  to  #them,  did  not  scruple,  at  a  favourable 
opportunity,  to  slay  the  young  prince,  and,  dashing  through  the  un- 
mounted attendant  archers,  were  soon  beyond  pursuit.  It  is  not 
pretended  that  this  cruel  and  ungrateful  murder  was  any  further 
essential  to  their  prof)osed  plan  of  escape,  than  as  creating  a  mo- 
mentary panic  and  confusion  among  the  guards.  They  made  their 
way  in  safety  across  the  iuterveuing  deserts,  and,  reaching  Peru,  bore 


r 


a-" 


,«"■.• 


a 


f-ii 


'M 


-IP 


1             ""     ' 

CHILI. 


273 


intelligence  of  the  condition  of  the  Chilian  settlement,  and  of  their  own 
disasters,  to  the  governor,  Vacca  de  Castro,  successor  to  Pizarro. 

Recruits  were  at  once  collected  and  dispatched  to  St.  Jago,  both 
by  land  and  sea.  In  spite  of  these  reinforcements,  the  colony  suf- 
fered severely  from  the  marauding  expeditions  of  the  natives. 
Nearly  the  entire  force  engaged  at  the  Quillotan  mines  was  cut  off 
by  an  ambuscade  into  which  the  soldiers  and  miners  were  drawn 
by  one  of  the  Indians.  The  exhibition  of  "a  pot  full  of  gold,"  with 
the  information  that  abundance  more  was  to  be  found  at  a  designated 
locality,  so  excited  their  cupidity  that,  without  order  or  precaution 
of  any. kind,  they  hurried  towards  the  spot,  ami  were  easily  de- 
stroyed at  a  disadvantage.  It  is  said  that  only  two  escaped,  the  com 
mander  and  a  negro,  both  of  whom  happened  to  be  well  mounted. 
Valdivia  sustained  a  further  loss  in  the  destruction  of  his  arsenal 
and  of  the  armed  vessel  built  in  Chile,  both  of  which  were  burned 
by  th'-  "mtives. 

In  ^er  to  secure  a  safe  stopping-place  for  land-parties  between 
Para  and  his  own  capital,  the  governor,  in  the  year  1546,  com- 
menced the  foundation  of  a  town  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  Coquimbo. 
Having  taken  this  step  to  secure  himself  at  the  north,  he  made 
preparations  for  pushing  his  conquests  in  the  hitherto  unexplored 
provinces  at  the  southward.  Juan  Batista  Pastene,  a  naval  officer, 
who  had  brought  out  a  large  f  arty  from  Peru,  had  before  been 
commissioned  to  explore  the  coast  of  the  Straits  of  Magellan,  but 
little  was  known  of  the  interior. 

In  what  manner  Valdivia  subdued  or  conciliated  the  bold  and 
warlike  Promaucians  is  not  distinctly  related,  but  certain  it  is  that 
they  threw  no  serious  obstacles  in  his  path  of  conquest;  and  that 
they  long  after  lent  him  the  aid  of  their  warriors  in  his  battles  with 
the  other  aborigines.  During  this  year  (1546)  the  Spanish  forces 
penetrated  as  far  south  as  the  river  Itata,  at  which  place  they  suf- 
fered so  severe  a  loss  at  the  hands  of  the  natives,  particularly  in  the 
seizure  of  their  horses,  that  they  were  forced  to  retire  to  the  capital. 
In  1547,  Valdivia  sailed  for  Peru,  with  a  great  treasure  in  gold,  to 
secure  the  enlistment  of  volunteers  for  Chili,  The  fierce  civil  wars, 
in  which  the  conquerors  of  the  empire  of  the  incaa  became  involved, 
were  now  raging,  and  the  Chilian  governor  lent  his  assistance  to  the 
President  Gasca.  Ilis  services  were  rewarded  by  abundant  supplies 
of  stores  and  munitions  of  war  for  his  own  territory,  and  he  re- 
turned to  Chili  with  a  large  number  of  fresh  adventurers. 


V  KJLl.     J.iX.' 


-xo 


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in 


ut*! 


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-^1ij;-H 


W' 


m:f 


274 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF   lllSTOliV. 


Several  years  passed  away  without  further  attempts  against  the 
unsubdued  tribes  of  the  south.  Meantime,  the  settlement  at  Co- 
quimbo  had  been  destroyed,  and  the  settlers  in  that  province  had 
perished  by  the  assaults  of  the  Indians.  The  city  was  rebuilt  in 
1649.  In  1560  Valdivia  collected  an  army  of  Spaniards  and  Proraau- 
cians,  and  set  out  in  hopes  to  accomplish  his  long-cherished  scheme 
of  southern  conquest.  In  the  month  of  October,  having  reached  the 
bay  of  I'enca,  the  natural  advantages  of  the  place  induced  him  to 
pause,  and  lay  the  foundation  of  a  new  city,  to  be  called  Conception. 
While  the  Spaniards  were  engaged  in  this  work,  an  opportunity  was 
afforded  to  the  n|||,ives  of  the  vicinity  to  effect  a  coalition  with  allies 
of  whose  courage,  fortitude  and  military  skill,  no  adequate  concep- 
tion had  been  hitherto  formed.  These  were  the  celebrated  Arauca- 
nians,  who  derived  their  name  from  Arauco,  one  of  their  smaller 
provinces.  The  power  of  the  incas  had  never  been  extended  so  far 
as  the  district  in  which  the  Spaniards  were  now  establishing  a  foot- 
hold, and  the  Araucanians,  who  had  from  time  immemorial  main 
tained  complete  independence  of  every  other  nation,  promptly 
determined  to  march  at  once  against  the  invaders,  and  not  to  wait 
the  expected  violation  of  their  own  rights  of  territory. 

Of  this  singular  people,  the  early  historian  of  Chili,  Don  J.  Ignatius 
Molina,  gives  accounts  so  highly  coloured,  that  his  veracity  has  been 
called  in  question,  but  he  solemnly*avers  that  all  which  he  gives  as 
fact  was  drawn  from  reliable  authority.  The  apparent  exaggeration 
of  his  eulogium  may  be  confined  to  the  imaginative  conclusions  which 
he  has  drawn  from  correct  premises,  and  may  arise  from  the  enthu- 
siasm naturally  excited  by  the  detail  and  contemplation  of  the  won- 
derful intrepidity,  and  unequalled  spirit  of  endurance  which  have 
ever  characterized  these  hardy  mountaineers. 

Their  country  was  separated  from  that  of  the  Pencones  by  the 
river  Bio-bio,  and  across  this  stream  an  Araucanian  army  was  led  by 
Aillavilu  the  Toqui,  a  military  chieftain  of  the  country. 


%:*- 


m 


CHILI. 


275 


■•.'.'■ 


.»'••-'      r  n    A   D  T  1?  1)     T  T 

■;.  ,  ,  Li  (1)1  i£3t  r    I    lU  lU      I   !•  <-, 

BATTLE  AT   THE  ANDALIBN. — INVASION    OF    ARAUCANIA. — 
FOUNDATION    OF    THE    CITY    OF     VALDIVIA. — ELECTION 
OF  CAUPOLICAN    TO    THE    OFFICE    OF    TOQUI. — INDIAN 
SUCCESSES. — DEFEAT  AND   DEATH  OF    VALDIVIA, — 
DEFEAT  OF   VILLAGRAN  BY   LAUTAEO. — DESTRUC- 
TION OF  THE  CITY  OF  CONCEPTION. 

A  PITCHED  battle  took  place  on  the  banks  of  the  Andalien,  and  for 
the  first  time  the  Spaniards  encountered  an  enemy  in  whom  the 
novelty  of  cavalry  and  fire-arms  excited  neither  terror  nor  confusion. 
With  true  military  skill  Aillavilu  turned  the  flank  of  his  opponents, 
and  fell  upon  them  in  front  and  rear  with  the  greatest  impetuosity. 
As  the  foremost  ranks  of  the  assailants  were  swept  away  by  the  fire 
from  the  squares  into  which  the  Spaniards  were  compelled  to  form, 
fresh  forces  rushed  forward,  in  perfect  order  and  discipline,  to  supply 
their  places.  The  death  of  the  toqui,  who  exposed  his  person  in  the 
place  of  greatest  danger,  caused  the  natives  to  make  an  orderly  retreat. 

The  Spanish  commander  now  saw  the  necessity  for  entrenching 
himself  more  strongly  than  he  had  proposed  against  so  formidable 
an  enemy,  and  proceeded  to  build  a  fort  near  the  city.  This  proved 
the  salvation  of  the  army,  for  the  Araucanians,  having  elected  a  new 
toqui,  named  Lincoyan,  a  man  of  huge  stature,  but  wanting,  it  is 
said,  in  energy  and  self-confidence,  again  advanced  upon  the  city. 
Their  approach  created  great  consternation,  and  the  Spaniards,  "  after 
confessing  themselves  and  partaking  of  the  sacrament,  took  shelter 
under  the  cannon  of  their  fortifications."  Unable  to  carry  the  place 
by  storm,  Lincoyan  drew  off  his  forces,  and  the  colonists  were  left 
without  further  molestation  to  continue  their  labours  on  the  buildings 
in  the  city. 

Affairs  looKed  prosperous;  fresh  companies  of  adventurers  came 
out  from  Peru,  and  Valdivia,  forgetful  of  the  spirit  exhibited  by  the 
Araucanians  in  the  first  battle,  determined  to  attack  them  in  their 
own  territory.  He  crossed  the  Bio-bio  in  1552,  and  by  rapid  marches 
passed  through  the  provinces  of  Encol  and  Puren,  and  laid  the 
foundations  of  the  city  of  Imperial  on  the  bank  of  the  river  Cauten. 
Feeling  himself  secure  in  possession  of  the  country,  (for  Lincoyan  did 


111 'I 


\\ 


276 


THIS  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IllSTOBY. 


not  venture  to  measure  his  strength  with  that  of  the  Spaniards,)  Val. 
tlivia  made  extensive  assignments  of  territory  to  his  subordinates. 
lie  commissioned  Alderete,  an  officer  in  the  army,  with  sixty  followers 
to  commence  a  settlement  on  the  lake  of  Lauquen,  and,  with  recruited 
forces,  continued  his  march  to  the  southern  bounds  of  Arancania. 
The  river  Caliacalla  divided  this  country  from  that  of  the  Cunches 
who  at  first  made  great  demonstration  of  resistance,  but,  after  sonic 
negotiation,  laid  aside  their  hostile  attitude,  and  permitted  the  army 
to  pass  the  stream.  Upon  its  southern  bank  was  founded  the  ill- 
fated  city  on  which  the  governor  bestowed  his  own  name,  Valdivia. 

Without  proceadiug  farther,  the  commander  now  took  measures  to 
secure  his  supposed  conquests,  and  returning  through  Puren,  Tucapel 
and  Arauco,  he  built  a  fort  in  each  province.  No  efficient  resistance 
was  made  by  the  natives  to  these  offensive  operations,  although  many 
battles  or  skirmishes  took  place  during  their  progress,  llistorians 
attribute  this  uncharacteristic  want  of  energy  to  the  stupidity  or  over- 
caution  of  the  Toqui  Lincoyan.  Valdivia,  considering  the  country 
as  subdued,  and  the  natives  as  permanently  overawed,  thought  only 
of  increasing  the  number  of  his  settlements  and  extending  his  terri- 
torial occupation.  In  the  district  of  Encol,  he  founded  his  seventh 
colony,  calling  the  new  city  the  City  of  the  Frontiers.  It  afterwards 
went  by  the  name  of  Angol,  and  previous  to  its  destruction  is  spoken 
of  as  having  become  prosperous  and  wealthy.  Alderete  was  at  this 
time  sent  to  Spain  with  magnificent  reports  concerning  the  con- 
quered country,  and  with  instructions  to  procure  for  his  superior,  if 
possible,  from  the  emperor,  a  special  commission  of  authority.  These 
events  took  place  in  the  year  1553.       •  : ';  r..:  '.-.  j  . 

Meanwhile,  an  important  movement  was  going  on  among  the 
Araucanians.  An  aged  ulmen  of  Arauco,  named  Colocolo,  disgusted 
with  the  supineness  of  the  Toqui  Lincoyan,  exhorted  his  countrymen 
to  combine  for  the  expulsion  of  the  foreigners.  He  travelled  through- 
out Araucania,  boldly  advocating  the  deposition  of  a  leader  who  had 
proved  himself  without  capacity  for  his  responsible  office,  and  the 
appointment  of  one  whose  valour  and  energies  might  save  his  people 
Irom  Spanish  tyranny  and  aggression.  Great  matters  u(  state, 
involving  the  interest  of  the  nation  at  large,  were  decided,  among 
these  primitive  people,  by  a  council  of  the  ulmenes,  or  caciques  of 
the  different  proviiKM-s,  held  in  an  open  field.  Such  a  meeting  was 
therefore  appointed,  and  discussion  ran  high  as  to  the  fittest  sucossor 
to  the  dictalorshi]),  to  be  vacated  by  the  removal  of  Lincoyan. 


cniLi. 


277 


One  Tucapel,  a  chief  of  great  military  renown,  was  the  most  promi- 
nent candidate,  but  as  his  election  was  opposed  by  a  powerful  party, 
it  was  finally  determined  to  submit  the  decision  to  Colocolo.  The 
old  chief  nominated  Caupolican,  ulmen  of  Pilmayquen,  who  was 
accordingly  installed  amid  universal  acclamation.  The  unsuccessful 
candidates,  including  the  famous  Tucapel,  with  commendable  freedom 
from  envy  or  jealousy,  accepted  subordinate  positions  under  the 
new  toqui.  ■  h  ^f-"!  f '■'•!!  ';'•;('  U'  •!>-,.;•  ,■  ;■-■',■. 

All  were  now  eager  for  war,  but  Caupolicap  restrained  their  im- 
petuosity until  he  could  make  preparations  for  striking  an  unexpected 
blow.  The  fort  at  Arauco  was  his  first  object  of  attack.  Eighty  of 
the  Indian  auxiliaries  to  the  Spaniards,  who  had  been  sent  out  to 
collect  forage  for  the  horses,  were  taken  prisoners  on  their  way 
back  to  the  fort.  Caupolican  substituted  an  equal  number  of  his 
best  warriors,  who,  with  their  arms  concealed  in  the  trusses  of  grass 
afid  hay,  easily  efi*ected  an  entrance.  A  fierce  contest  ensued,  but 
before  the  Araucanian  army  could  reach  the  scene  of  action,  the 
assailants  were  driven  out,  and  the  draw-bridge  was  raised.  After 
a  fruitless  endeavour  to  storm  the  place,  Caupolican  was  obliged  to 
content  himself  with  reducing  it  by  blockade.  This  was  effected, 
but  the  garrison  escaped  at  night,  charging  through  the  besiegers  at 
the  full  speed  of  their  horses,  and  making  their  way  without  obstruc- 
tion to  Puren. 

The  military  post  at  Tucapel  met  with  the  same  fate  with  that  of 
Arauco,  and  the  troops  stationed  there  also  retreated  to  Puren.  At 
Tucapel,  Caupolican  encamped  to  await  offensive  operations  on  the 
pai-t  of  the  Spaniards.  Valdivia  in  all  haste  collected  his  forces, 
amounting,  it  appears,  to  several  hundred  Spaniards  and  some  thou- 
sands of  his  Indian  allies,  and  marched  against  the  insurgents,  who, 
in  still  greater  force,  were  prepared  for  a  decisive  engagement.  The 
two  armies  met  before  the  fort  at  Tucapel,  on  the  3d  of  December, 
1553.  As  the  Spaniards  approached  the  scene  of  action,  they  were 
stricken  with  consternation  at  the  sight  of  the  gory  heads  of  eleven 
of  their  number,  who  had  been  sent  forward  to  reconnoitre,  cut  off 
and  hung  from  the  trees  by  the  way-side. 

The  right  wing  of  the  Araucanian  army  was  under  command  of 
Mariantu,  the  vice^toqui,  and  the  left  was  led  by  the  valiant  Tucapel. 
Mariantu  commenced  the  attack,  and  the  whole  opposing  forces  were 
speedily  engaged  in  a  most  desperate  struggle.  It  was  remarked,  as 
on  a  former  occasion,  that  the  thunder  and  havoc  of  the  artillery 


% 


'■■\r 

'r  >■ 


.r1* 


•*I 


■■»;*r-  -!  Eli 


278 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


])roduced  no  confusion  or  dismay  on  the  part  of  the  Araucanians 
those  behind  pressing  forward  with  the  utmost  eagerness  to  take  tlit^ 
places  of  those  who  fell.  Again  and  again  they  made  an  orderly 
retreat,  only  to  form  anew,  and  rush  with  renewed  fury  to  the  attack. 
Victory  at  last  seemed  in  the  hands  of  the  Spaniards;  an  immense 
number  of  the  enemy  had  fallen,  while  the  rest  wore  in  disorder,  and 
began  to  crowd  confusedly  together  in  their  retreat  from  the  charge 
of  the  armed  and  disciplined  soldiers  of  Valdivia. 

Among  the  Spanish  troops  was  an  Araucanian  youth,  only  sixteen 
years  of  age,  named  Lautaro,  who  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  Val- 
divia on  some  former  occasion,  and  who  served  as  his  personal 
attendant.  £xcited  by  the  discomfiture  of  his  countrymen,  at  the 
moment  when  the  Spaniards  were  rushing  forward  with  exultimr 
shouts,  this  young  Indian  threw  himself  among  the  fugitives,  and, 
seizing  a  lance,  exhorted  them  to  rally  and  preserve  the  honour  and 
safety  of  their  country.  He  hastily  represented  that  the  Spaniards 
were  worn  out  with  fatigue,  and  must  give  way  if  the  contest  could 
be  longer  maintained.  "The  Araucanians,"  says  Molina,  "ashamed 
at  being  surpassed  by  a  boy,  turned  with  such  fury  upon  their  ene- 
mies, that  at  the  first  shock  they  put  them  to  rout,  cutting  in  pieces 
the  Spaniards  and  their  allies,  so  that  of  the  whole  of  this  army, 
only  two  Promaucians  had  the  fortune  to  escape,  by  fleeing  to  a 
neighbouring  wood." 

Valdivia  was  taken  prisoner,  and  when  brought  into  the  presence 
of  Caupolican,  made  supplication  for  his  life,  promising  to  abandon 
all  his  undertakings,  and  remove  with  his  people  from  the  country, 
if  he  were  set  at  liberty.  Lautaro,  retaining  a  regard  for  his  former 
master,  joined  in  these  entreaties,  and  Caupolican  appeared  about 
to  yield,  when  an  old  chief  among  the  bystanders  put  an  end  to 
the  discussion,  by  striking  the  prisoner  dead  with  his  war-cluh. 
lie  then  justified  himself,  with  the  remark,  "that  they  must  be  mad 
to  trust  to  the  promises  of  an  ambitious  enemy,  who,  as  soon  as  he 
had  escaped  from  this  danger,  would  make  a  mock  of  them,  and 
luugh  at  his  oaths." 

On  the  succeeding  day  the  victorious  Araucanians  gathered  with 
their  friends  from  far  and  near,  to  celebrate  their  success.  The  heads 
of  the  slain  Spaniards  and  Promaucians  were  hung  from  trees  as 
ghastly  trophies,  while  the  toqui  and  his  officers,  decked  in  the 
arms  and  habiliments  of  the  Europeans,  presided  over  the  fes* 
tivities  of  the  day. 


CHILI. 


279 


The  effect  of  this  disastrous  engagement  upon  the  colonists  in 
Araucania,  was  to  create  a  universal  panic.  Deserting  Angol,  Puren, 
and  Villarica,  they  shut  themselves  up  in  the  fortified  towns  of  Val- 
divia  and  Conception.  To  these  places  Caupolican  at  once  laid 
siege.  Lautaro  having  been  invested  with  the  highest  subordinate 
command  in  the  army,  as  a  reward  for  his  valour  and  patriotism, 
was  posted,  with  a  powerful  force,  upon  the  rugged  heights  of 
Mariguenu,  a  mountain  which  must  be  passed  by  any  troops  marched 
into  Arauco  from  the  northern  Chilian  settlements. 

Francis  Villagran,  who,  by  a  previous  appointment  of  the  deceased 
governor,  succeeded  to  the  administration  of  the  colonial  affairs, 
marched  without  delay  to  the  relief  of  the  besieged.  A  short  dis- 
tance southward  from  the  Bio-bio,  he  encountered  the  advanced 
guard  of  Lautaro's  division,  which  he  defeated  after  a  fierce  contest 
of  three  hours'  duration,  and  pressed  on  up  the  mountain.  The 
Araucanians  were  protected  by  a  palisade,  and,  as  it  proved  impos- 
sible to  force  their  position  by  assault,  six  field-pieces  were  brought 
to  bear  upon  the  entrenchments,  and  a  steady  fire  of  musketry  was 
kept  up  at  a  convenient  distance.  Seeing  the  destruction  caused  by 
the  cannon,  Lautaro  ordered  one  of  his  officers,  named  Leucoton,  to 
storm  the  battery  and  bring  away  the  pieces,  charging  him  not  to 
return  without  accomplishing  his  errand.  The  attempt  was  com- 
pletely successful ;  the  cannon  were  seized  and  dragged  off,  and,  by 
a  sudden  and  simultaneous  rush  at  all  points,  the  Spaniards  were 
utterly  routed,  and  driven  in  confusion  down  the  narrow  path  of  the 
mountain.  A  party  previously  dispatched  by  the  Araucanian  com- 
mander had  thrown,  during  the  fight,  a  barricade  of  logs  across  the 
defile,  and  the  fugitives,  thus  cut  off  from  retreat,  mostly  perished. 
The  governor,  with  a  few  well-mounted  followers,  succeeded  in 
forcing  his  way  through  the  enemy,  and  reached  Conception  in  safety. 

At  that  city,  their  arrival  and  report  produced,  in  the  words  of 
Molina,  "indescribable  terror  and  consternation.  There  was  not  a 
family  but  had  the  loss  of  some  relative  to  deplore.  The  alarm  was 
greatly  heightened  by  the  news  of  the  near  approach  of  Lautaro, 
Villagran,  who  thought  it  impossible  to  defend  the  city,  embarked 
precipitately  the  old  men,  the  women,  and  the  children  on  board  of 
two  ships  that  were  then  fortunately  in  the  harbour,  with  orders  to 
the  coptains  to  conduct  part  of  them  to  Imperial  and  part  to  Val- 
paraiso; while,  with  the  rest  of  the  inhabitants,  he  proceeded  by 
land  to  Santiago." 


"i 


280 


THE   TEOPLK'S   BOOK    OF   IllSTOKY. 


Tiautaro  and  Lis  forces  entered  the  deserted  city,  and,  after  collect- 
ii)g  much  valuable  booty,  left  behind  by  the  inhabitants  at  their 
hasty  departure,  entirely  destroyed  the  place,  levelling  the  fortress 
with  the  ground,  and  reducing  the  wooden  buildings  to  ashes.  Vil- 
lagran  was  enabled  to  throw  fresh  troops  and  sujjplies  into  the  be- 
sieged'cities  of  Valdivia  and  Imperial ;  and  Caupolican  perceiving  that 
the  reduction  of  these  places  would  involve  great  loss  of  time  and  men 
drew  off  his  army,  and  effected  a  junction  with  that  under  Lautaro. 


CWAPTTTU     TTT 
iiit  Zit  i.    1   Xi  iH     ill, 

lORTALlTT   AMONG   THE   INDIANS.  —  DISPUTES    RESPECTING   THE 

VICEROYAI.TY. — SECOND    DESTRUCTION    OP    CONCEPTION. — 

LAUTAUO'S    EXPEDITION    AGAINST    SANTIAGO.  —  DON 

GARCIA   DE  MENDOZA. — INVASION  OP  ARAUCA- 

NIA.  —  CAUPOLICAN'8    DISCOMFITURE. 

—  EXPEDITION    TO    CHILOB. 


U 


TiiK  Spaniards  in  Imperial  proceeded  to  plunder  and  lay  wa^to 
the  country  in  their  cinity,  storing  within  the  walla  all  the  y,r. 
visions  on  which  they  could  lay  their  hands.  In  their  excursions 
for  this  purpose,  some  of  their  number,  being  infected  with  the  small- 
pox, communicated  that  disease  to  the  natives^ and  a  mortality  more 
fearful  than  the  sword  of  the  enemy  ensued.  There  was  one  prov- 
ince, the  population  of  which  amounted,  it  is  said,  "to  twelve  thou- 
sand persons,  of  which  number,  not  more  than  one  hundred  escaped 
with  life." 

In  accordance  with  the  settlement  enjoined  by  Valdivia,  two  ofii- 
cers  of  note,  Alderete  and  one  Francis  Aiguirre,  had  precedence  of 
Yillagran  in  the  government,  but  their  absence  at  the  time  of  the 
first  viceroy's  decease,  left  him  without  a  rival.  The  return  of 
Aiguirre  to  Chili  threatened  to  involve  the  country  in  a  civil  war, 
but  it  was  finally  agreed  to  submit  the  question  to  the  lioyal  Audi- 
ence of  Lima,  a  tribunal  of  supreme  authority  over  the  Spanish 
provinces  of  South  America.  In  the  course  of  the  year  (1555)  Yil- 
lagran was  formally  confirmed  in  his  viceroyalty,  and  was  specially 
instructed  to  rebuild  the  ruined  city  of  Conception.     He  comjjlicd 


.*, 


CHILI. 


281 


with  the  order,  although  against  his  own  better  judgment,  and  had 
ft  second  time  the  mortification  of  hearing  that  the  Araucanians, 
under  Lautaro,  had  made  a  descent  upon  the  city,  had  slain  or  expelled 
the  inhabitants,  and  had  left  the  place  a  smoking  waste  of  ruins. 

This  success  encouraged  the  natives  to  renew  their  efibrta  against 
the  colonies.  Caupolican  again  invested  Imperial  and  Valdivia,  wliilc 
Lautaro,  with  the  most  audacious  self-confidence,  undertook  to  march 
against  Santiago.  With  an  army  of  only  six  hundred  men,  he  passed 
the  Bio-bio,  and  proceeded  northward,  his  appearance  being  hailed 
with  acclamations  by  the  natives  of  the  districts  which  he  traversed. 
Having  crossed  the  river  Mdzule,  and  reached  Promaucia,  his  policy, 
hitherto  peaceful,  suddenly  changed,  and  instead  of  endeavouring  to 
gain  over  the  inhabitants  from  the  Spanish  interest,  he  fell  upon 
them  with  all  the  fury  of  revenge,  and,  after  ravaging  the  neigh- 
bouring country,  fortified  himself  upon  the  bank  of  the  Rio  Claro. 

Villagran  was  at  this  time  sick  and  disabled,  but  his  former  expe- 
rience of  Araucanian  valour  and  determination,  taught  him  to  lose 
no  time  in  strengthening  the  defences  of  the  city.  He  also  forth- 
with dispatched  his  son  Pedro,  with  all  his  available  force,  to  attack 
Lautaro  at  his  encampment.  A  pretended  flight  on  the  part  of  the 
invaders  drew  the  Spaniards  within  the  enclosed  space  of  the  camp, 
where,  rallying  suddenly,  the  Araucanians  routed  them  with  great 
slaughter,  only  those  who  were  mounted  being  enabled  to  escape. 
Three  subsequent  assaults  proved  equally  unsuccessful,  and  Pedro 
encamped  on  the  plain  overlooked  by  the  hostile  fort. 

Upon  his  recovery,  the  old  governor,  in  the  year  1556,  undertook 
in  person  the  expulsion  of  the  intruders.  He  led  an  army  of  one 
hundred  and  ninety-six  Spaniards,  and  a  large  force  of  Indians,  by 
a  secret  route,  upon  Lautaro's  camp,  and  succeeded  in  reaching  it 
about  day -break,  without  discovery.  "Lautaro,"  says  the  Chilian 
historian,  "who  at  that  moment  had  retired  to  rest,  after  having 
been  upon  guard,  as  was  his  custom  during  the  night,  leaped  from 
bis  bed  at  the  first  alarm  of  the  sentinels,  and  ran  to  the  entrench- 
ments to  observe  the  enemy.  At  the  same  time  a  dart,  hurled  by 
one  of  the  Indian  auxiliaries,  pierced  his  heart,  and  he  fell  lifeless 
in  the  arms  of  his  companions."  The  whole  of  his  Araucanian 
warriors,  unable  to  form  and  oppose  any  effectual  resistance,  were 
cut  off  to  a  man.  They  refused  quarter,  and  fought  to  the  last  with 
desperate  fury.  The  death  of  Lautaro  was  a  severe  blow  to  the 
Araucanian   patriots;    the   toqui,  Caupolican,  disheartened  by  so 


*i 


W 


I '  i 


"!t 


i 


3.m 


m 


rfnm 


282 


TIIK   PEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  H18TORY 


!   1M 


l!4 


severe  a  reverse,  drew  off  liis  forces  from  Imperial  as  soon  as  tlio 
news  reached  him,  and  took  up  a  position  where  he  might  cut  oil' 
Airther  supplies  by  land  from  Peru.  The  esteem  in  which  the  young 
and  valiant  Lautaro  was  held  by  his  countrymen,  and  the  respect 
paid  to  his  memory  by  the  European  soldiery,  to  whom  he  had 
proved  so  dangerous  an  enemy,  are  still  commemorated  in  the 
works  of  contemporary  poets  and  historians.  *'  llis  enemies  them- 
selves," says  Molina,  "highly  applauded  his  valour  and  military 
talent,  and  compared  him  to  the  most  celebrated  generals  that  have 
appeared  in  the  world.  They  even  called  him  the  Chilian  Han- 
nibal, from  a  fancied  resemblance  between  his  character  and  that 
of  the  famous  Carthaginian  general,  although,  in  some  respects,  it 
had  a  much  greater  similarity  to  that  of  Scipio." 

When  news  of  Valdivia's  discomfiture  and  death  reached  Spain, 
Alderete  received  a  commission  from  Philip  II.,  as  his  successor;  but, 
as  he  died  before  entering  upon  his  office,  it  was  conferred  by  the 
Peruvian  viceroy,  the  Marquis  of  Canete,  upon  his  own  son,  Don 
Garcia  de  Mendoza.  With  a  considerable  fleet,  freighted  with 
abundant  provisions  and  stores,  and  accompanied  by  a  numerous 
band  of  those  military  adventurers  who  were  lefl  unemployed  bv 
the  cessation  of  the  civil  war,  the  new  viceroy  directed  his  course  to 
the  bay  of  Conception.  ^He  landed  at  the  island  of  Quiriquina  in 
the  month  of  April,  1557,  where,  after  driving  out  the  native  inhab- 
itants, he  fortified  himself,  resolved  to  await  the  arrival  of  his  cav- 
alry and  additional  recruits  from  Peru,  before  engaging  in  active 
operations  upon  the  main. 

Several  Araucanian  prisoners  were  set  at  liberty,  with  instructions 
to  make  known  to  the  native  authorities  the  disposition  of  the  Span- 
iards to  arrange  terms  for  a  permanent  peace.  At  a  general  assembly 
of  the  ulmenes,  it  was  concluded  that  no  reliance  could  be  placed 
upon  these  fair  promises  and  specious  proposals;  but  a  wary  and 
sagacious  chief,  named  Millalauco,  was  commissioned  to  return  an 
answer,  and  to  take  especial  note  of  the  number  and  equipment  of  tlie 
foreigners.  With  a  proud  and  independent  bearing,  the  envoy  made 
his  appearance  before  Don  Garcia,  and,  with  a  protest  that  his  people 
were  in  no  wise  intimidated  by  the  apparent  force  of  the  Spanish 
armament,  expressed  the  readiness  of  the  ulmenes  to  conclude  an 
honourable  peace.  Upon  hearing  his  report,  the  Araucanians  made 
diligent  preparations  for  war,  and  established  a  regular  system  of 
espionage  on  the  movements  of  the  Spaniards. 


ilil 


CHILI 


2b3 


I. 


On  the  niglit  of  August  6th,  Don  Oarcia  landed  his  first  detach- 
ment, and  eifectcd  a  husty  fortification  on  Mount  Pinto,  overlooking 
the  bay.  Three  days  afterwards,  Cuuj>olican,  with  a  great  force, 
attacltod  the  place.  Although  tlio  fort  was  well  defended  by  cannon, 
the  Indians  did  not  hesitate  to  c)<  trge  the  battery;  and  such  was 
their  eagerness  and  self-devotion,  that  many,  scaling  the  porapet, 
threw  themselves  within  the  enclosure,  and  died  fighting  with  fury 
to  the  last.  Tucapel,  in  person,  was  among  those  who  thus  exposed 
their  lives,  but  his  great  personal  strength  enabled  him  to  escape 
the  fate  of  his  companions.  The  assault  proved  unsuccessful,  ani 
after  a  whole  day's  fighting,  Caupolicou  was  obliged  to  withdraw. 
Immediately  after  this  engogement,  an  army  of  recruits,  including 
a  great  body  of  well-armed  cavalry,  landed  on  the  island. 

The  general  now  prepared  for  an  expedition  into  the  heart  of  the 
country,  and  transported  his  troops  in  boats  across  the  Bio-bio. 
Caupolican  was  unable  to  obstruct  his  march  into  Arauco,  and  after 
being  completely  defeated  in  one  engagement,  was  able  only  to  harass 
the  invaders  by  skirmishing  attacks  upon  the  flank  and  rear.  To 
odd  to  the  rage  and  indignation  of  the  Araucanians,  Don  Garcia  had 
the  barbarity  to  cut  off  the  hands  of  a  distinguished  prisoner,  named 
Galverino,  and  dismiss  him  as  a  warning  to  his  countrymen.  At 
Melipuru,  the  Spanish  commander,  by  torturing  several  prisoners, 
vainly  endeavoured  to  extort  information  of  the  movements  of  Cau- 
polican. On  the  day  following,  the  Araucanian  general  again  drew 
up  his  army  for  a  pitched  battle.  The  result  was  a  second  defeat; 
the  strong  body  of  cavalry,  with  the  weapons  of  Europeans,  proving 
too  great  an  advantage  over  native  valour" and  endurance.  Twelve 
chiefs,  among  them  the  brave  and  unfortunate  Galverino,  were  hanged 
by  order  of  Don  Garcia,  before  his  army  proceeded  on  its  march. 

In  the  province  of  Tucapel,  the  successful  invader  built  and  gar- 
risoned a  fort,  and  laid  out  a  city,  which  he  named  Canete.  Leaving 
Alonzo  Reynoso  in  command,  he  then  returned  to  Imperial,  confi- 
dent that  the  Araucanians  were  at  last  effectually  humbled  and 
reduced.  From  Imperial  a  body  of  troops,  with  abundance  of  pro- 
visions and  stores,  was  speedily  dispatched  to  defend  and  support  the 
new  city.  The  Araucanians  attacked  this  party  upon  the  road,  and 
possessed  themselves  of  the  booty;  but  the  Spaniards,  although 
completely  routed  and  put  to  flight,  succeeded  in  reaching  Canete  in 
safety.  Caupolican,  within  a  few  days  after  the  arrival  of  this  rein- 
forcement, assaulted  the  place,  but  was  unable  to  force  eutienchinentu 


1 


mi 


i 


n 


i 


284 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


substantially  constructed,  and  defended  by  artilleiy.  ITis  troops 
it  is  said,  "supported  a  continual  fire  for  five  hours,  now  scaling  the 
rampart,  now  pulling  up  or  burning  the  palisades." 

Endeavouring  subsequently  to  obtain  an  entrance  into  the  fort  by 
means  of  intriguing  with  a  native  Chilian  in  the  Spanish  service 
the  toqui  was  entirely  outwitted.  The  double  traitor,  while  he 
pretended  to  have  arranged  a  plan  for  the  admittance  of  the  besiegers 
at  an  unguarded  hour,  in  reality  kept  the  Spanish  commandant  fully 
informed  of  the  proposed  attack;  and  cannon,  heavily  loaded  with 
grape,  were  so  brought  to  bear  as  completely  to  command  the  en- 
trance. At  the  appointed  time,  the  gate  was  left  open,  and  the 
Araucanians,  anticipating  an  easy  victory,  poured  into  the  fort. 
As  the  fire  opened  upon  their  crowded  ranks,  and  the  Spaniards 
fully  prepared,  fell  upon  them  with  great  fury,  a  total  rout  ensued. 
Caupolican  himself  escaped,  and  fled  to  the  mountains,  but  his  army 
was  utterly  destroyed.  The  unfortunate  chief  never  recovered  from 
this  disaster;  Alonzo  Eeynoso,  after  long  search,  by  the  treachery  of 
a  native,  discovered  his  place  of  retreat,  and  dispatched  a  party  who 
succeeded  in  surprising  and  taking  him  captive.  The  royal  prisoner 
was  immediately  ordered  by  the  Spanish  commander  to  be  impaled 
and  shot  to  death  with  arrows,  a  sentence  which  was  accordingly  car- 
ried into  effect. 

Don  Garcia  was  at  this  time  absent  on  his  celebrated  expedition 
to  the  Archipelago  of  Chiloe.  He  set  out  from  Conception,  which 
he  had  directed  to  be  r§built,  in  the  year  1558,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  a  campaign  against  the  Cunches.  Arriving  among  these 
people,  whose  character  and  condition  was  as  yet  unknown  to  tho 
Spaniards,  his  designs  were  frustrated,  and  his  attention  diverted 
from  further  schemes  of  occupation  by  a  sagacious  manoeuvre,  for 
which  the  Cunchea  were  indebted  to  an  exiled  Araucanian.  This 
man,  named  Tunconobal,  advised  them  to  conceal  all  signs  of  wealth, 
and  to  impress  the  Spaniards  with  an  idea  that  the  country  and 
people  were  utterly  poor  and  destitute.  Tunconobal  was  therefore 
sent,  with  nine  comrades,  to  meet  the  Spanish  commander.  "Cloath- 
ing  himself  and  companions  in  wretched  rags,  he  appeared  with 
every  mark  of  fear  before  that  officer,  and  after  complimenting  him 
in  rude  terms,  presented  him  with  a  basket  containing  some  roasted 
lizards  and  wild  fruits."* 

Hopeless  of  obtaining  any  booty  from  such  a  people,  Don  Garcia 
■''  . '  Molina'a  History  of  Chill 


CHILI. 


285 


procured  a  guide  to  conduct  him  southward.  The  man  whom  the 
Cunches  furnished  for  this  service,  in  accordance  with  his  instruc- 
tions, led  the  army  through  the  most  wild  and  inhospitable  part  of 
the  country,  and  made  his  escape,  after  involving  the  way-worn  and 
famishing  soldiers  in  apparently  inextricable  difficulties  among  desert 
and  precipitous  mountains.  At  the  close  of  the  month  of  January, 
1559,  they  came  in  sight  of  the  beautiful  Archipelago  of  Chiioe,  and 
the  brilliant  spectacle  of  its  fertile  islands,  teeming  with  an  industri- 
ous population,  and  the  land-locked  waters,  covered  with  canoes  and 
sail-boats,  gladdened  their  eyes,  and  promised  rest  and  refreshment 
after  their  toilsome  journeyings.  The  natives  received  the  Span- 
iards with  the  greatest  kindness  and  hospitality,  and,  after  their 
strength  was  recruited,  furnished  them  with  provisions,  and  a  guide 
to  direct  them  upon  an  easy  route  homeward.  The  return-march 
through  the  provinces  of  the  Huilliches,  was  accomplished  with  little 
or  no  difficulty,  as  the  road  lay  through  a  level  country,  where  pro- 
visions could  easily  be  obtained. 


\.i 


C  n  A  P   X    £J  H     i  Y  . 

CAUPOLICAN  THE  YOUNGER. — SIGNAL    SUCCESSES  OP  THE  SPAN- 
IARDS.— WARLIKE   OPERATIONS  OP   ANTIOUENU. — OP    PAIL- 
LAMACHU. — RECOVERY     OP     ARAUCANIA     BY     THE 
NATIVES. — PEACE    CONCLUDED    IN    1641. 

Upon  the  death  of  Caupolican,  the  assembled  ulmenes  of  Arau- 
cania  elected  his  eldest  son  to  the  vacant  dictatorship.  Tucapel  was 
made  vice-toqui,  and  an  army  was  instantly  raised  to  prosecute  the 
war  against  the  murderous  intruders.  In  the  first  engagements,  the 
Spaniards  met  with  signal  defeat,  and  Don  Garcia,  having  marched 
from  Conception  to  Imperial,  found  himself  closely  besieged  by 
Caupolican  the  younger,  with  his  whole  army.  The  Araucanians 
were  unable  to  force  the  entrenchments,  and,  after  various  assaults, 
in  which  the  young  chief  exhibited  the  most  astonishing  prowess  and 
personal  courage,  they  were  compelled  to  raise  the  siege. 
.  In  the  ensuing  campaigns  of  this  year  (1559)  the  Spaniards  steadily 
gained  ground,  as  the  native  forces  were  continually  growing  weaker. 


286 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


while  the  arrival  of  recruits  by  sea  as  constantly  increased  the 
resources  of  the  former.  The  fatal  battle  of  Quipeo  crushed  for  the 
time  all  the  hopes  of  the  Araucanians.  Their  last  army  was  cut  to 
pieces;  their  bravest  and  most  influential  officers  were  slain;  amone 
others,  Tucapel,  Mariantu,  Colocolo,  and  Lincoyan;  and  the  brave 
Caupolican,  to  avoid  falling  into  the  hands  of  his  enemies,  perished 
by  his  own  hand. 

Don  Garcia  now  rebuilt  the  forts  in  Arauco,  Angol,  and  other 
provinces.  He  also  reopened  the  long-neglected  gold  and  silver 
mines,  and  sent  a  body  of  troops,  under  Pedro  Castillo,  across  the 
Andes,  to  extend  and  confirm  the  Spanish  authority  in  the  east. 
That  officer  founded  the  cities  of  St.  Juan  and  Mendoza  on  the 
eastern  slope  of  the  great  mountain  range. 

Francis  Villagran  being  reinstated  in  the  viceroyalty  of  Chili,  Don 
Garcia  returned  to  Peru,  having,  as  was  generally  believed,  com- 
pletely established  the  Spanish  power  in  the  former  country.  The 
Araucanians,  notwithstanding  their  terrible  reverses,  still  cherished 
the  hope  of  liberty,  and  having  chosen  a  distinguished  warrior,  named 
Antiguenu,  for  their  toqui,  retreated  to  the  marshy  wilderness  of 
Lumaco.  In  this  secure  place  of  concealment,  Antiguenu  devoted 
himself  to  disciplining  the  youth  enlisted  to  take  the  place  of 
the  veteran  warriors  who  had  perished  in  the  late  disastrous  war 
and  soon  began  to  commit  depredations  on  the  more  exposed 
Spanish  settlements.  When  his  force  had  increased  sufficiently  to 
justify  open  hostilities,  he  fortified  himself  upon  Mount  Mariguenu 
the  scene  of  the  brilliant  exploit  of  Lautaro,  and  had  the  good  fortune 
to  be  attacked  in  this  stronghold  by  a  Spanish  army,  under  a  son  of 
the  viceroy.  The  Araucanians  were  signally  successful,  and  the 
Spanish  force  was  almost  entirely  destroyed. 

Without  delay,  Antiguenu  now  fell  upon  and  reduced  the  fortress  of 
Caneto,  and  dispatched  a  large  army  to  make  a  new  attempt  upon  the 
city  of  Conception.  At  the  same  time,  he  laid  siege  to  the  fort  at 
Arauco,  then  in  command  of  Lorenzo  Bernal.  The  city  proved  too 
strong  to  be  taken  by  assault,  and  too  well  provisioned  to  be  success- 
fully blockaded,  but  the  obnoxious  furt  at  Arauco  was  taken  and  de- 
stroyed. Thus  fur  the  Indians  were  8ucces.sful,  but,  (in  the  year  1504,1 
as  Antiguenu  wns  upon  his  march  against  Angol,  he  wascotniKlled 
to  engage  the  whole  Spanish  army,  under  Bernal,  who  attacked  liin. 
upon  tlic  bank  of  the  Bio-bio,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Vcrgosa.  Tlio 
brave  tot^^ui  was  slain,  and  his  followers  were  destroyed  or  dispersed. 


CHILI. 


287 


From  this  period  until  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century,  not- 
withstanding the  determined  spirit  and  continual  efforts  of  the 
Araucanians,  the  Spanish  colonists  steadily  gained  ground.  Among 
the  succession  of  famous  native  chiefs  who  held  the  office  of  toqui 
and  conducted  the  more  important  campaigns,  the  names  of  Pailla- 
taru,  Cayancaru,  and  Cadeguala,  were  the  most  distinguished.  Not- 
withstanding the  resistance  of  the  aborigines,  the  forts  at  Canete, 
Arauco,  &c.,  were  restored,  and  a  new  post  was  established  at  Quipeo. 
The  Chiloan  Archipelago  was  also  brought  under  subjection,  and 
the  peaceable  islanders  submitted  to  foreign  tyranny  and  exactions, 
with  scarcely  an  effort  at  resistance. 

In  the  year  1696  the  tide  of  Spanish  successes  began  to  turn. 
The  native  ruler,  at  this  period,  was  the  celebrated  Paillamachu,  a 
very  aged  but  active  and  energetic  chief.  The  Spanish  viceroy  was 
Don  Martin  Loyola,  a  nephew  of  St.  Ignatius,  founder  of  the  pow- 
erful order  of  the  Jesuits.  Paillamachu,  in  the  old  places  of  retreat 
among  the  morasses  of  Lumaco,  had  for  years  been  engaged  in 
recruiting  and  disciplining  his  shattered  forces,  and,  in  1596,  c«.m- 
menced  a  most  vexatious  system  of  petty  warfare  against  the  Span- 
iards, making  forays  upon  their  smaller  settlements,  for  plunder,  and 
for  the  exercise  and  instruction  of  his  inexperienced  youth. 

Loyola  could  effect  nothing  against  such  an  enemy,  and  at  last 
devoted  his  attention  to  the  fortification  and  strengthening  the  more 
important  military  posts,  wisely  deeming  thai  these  might  eventually 
be  the  only  places  of  refuge  against  the  indomitable  Araucanians. 
Upon  his  return  northward,  after  a  visit  for  this  purpose  to  Imperial, 
in  the  month  of  November,  1698,  the  viceroy  encamped  in  the  valley 
of  Caralva.  Supposing  himself  far  from  the  reach  of  the  enemy,  he 
had  dismissed  the  greater  part  of  his  escort.  Paillamachu  had, 
however,  kept  upon  his  track,  with  two  hundred  warriors,  and 
seized  the  opportunity  to  fall  upon  the  encampment.  Loyola  and 
all  his  attendants  perished.  Simultaneously  with  this  event,  by 
the  admirably  concerted  arrangements  of  the  toqui,  the  natives 
throughout  Araucania,  as  well  as  the  Cunches  and  Huilliches,  rose 
in  mass.  "Every  Spaniard  who  had  the  misfortune  to  be  found 
without  the  garrisons  was  put  to  death;  and  the  cities  of  Osorno, 
Valdivia,  Villarica,  Imperial,  Canete,  Angol,  Coya,  and  the  fortress 
at  Arauco,  were  all  at  once  invested  with  a  close  siege.  Not 
content  with  this,  Paillaniacliu,  without  loss  of  time,  crossed  the 
Bio-bio,  burned  the  cities  of  Conception  and  Chilian,  laid  waste 


288 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   0  i-'    ill.-?Tui;V 


the  provinces  in  their  dependence,  and  returned  loaded  with  spoil 
to  his  country."* 

During  the  three  years  succdec'ing,  all  the  Spanish  settlements  in 
Araucania  were  destroyed,  and  the  whole  country  south  of  the  Bia 
bio  was  regained  by  the  natives.  A  singular  mixture  ot  races 
resulted  from  the  adoption  by  the  Araucanian  conquerors  of  the 
prisoners  taken  at  the  reduction  of  the  principal  towns.  It  appears 
that  the  half-breeds  who  thereafter  formed  a  portion  of  the  inde- 
pendent population  of  Chili,  were  the  most  implacable  enemies  of 
the  Europeans.  From  this  time  until  the  year  1618,  the  Bio-bio 
constituted  the  boundary  between  the  hostile  races.  Many  ineffectual 
attempts  were  made  by  the  Spanish  viceroys  to  recover  the  lost  ter- 
ritory, and  equally  futile  proposals  for  the  establishment  of  a  peaceful 
communication,  for  the  purpose  of  missionary  enterprise,  were  set 
on  foot,  in  conformity  with  the  wishes  of  the  zealous  but  bigoted 
monarch  of  Spain. 

From  1618  to  1632  the  office  of  toqui  was  held  by  the  warlike 
chieftains  Lientur  and  Putapichion,  who  not  only  maintained  pes- 
ses.sion  of  their  own  territory,  but  made  continual  inroads  upon  the 
Spanish  settlements,  bearing  off  prisoners,  horses,  and  other  valuable 
booty.  The  Araucanians  were  at  this  time  habituating  themselves 
to  the  art  of  riding,  and  to  the  use  of  fire-arms,  as  far  as  they  could 
be  procured.  The  war  continued  until  the  year  1640,  when  the 
viceroyalty  of  Chili  was  conferred  upon  Don  Francisco  Zuniga, 
Marquis  of  Baydes,  who  had  before  done  good  service  for  Spain  in 
the  wars  of  the  Low  Countries.  This  officer  perceived  that  little  was 
to  bo  gained  by  continued  hostilities  with  an  enemy  whom  no 
reverses  could  dispirit — no  severity  subdue.  The  Spanish  armv 
was  greatly  reduced,  although  from  time  to  time  reinforced  by 
fresh  arrivals  from  Peru;  and  the  Araucanians,  in  the  midst  of  the 
misery  and  destitution  consequent  upon  such  long  and  bloody  con- 
tests, appeared  no  less  determined  than  when  they  first  made  a  stand 
against  the  invasion  by  Valdivia.  Always  well  versed  in  military 
tactii>,  tlioy  had  now  become  far  more  dangerous  opponents,  from  tlieir 
acquisition  of  horses  and  from  their  experience  of  European  warfare. 

Immediately  on  his  arrival,  the  marquis  took  measures  to  procure 
a  personal  interview  with  Linoopichion,  the  toqui,  and  preliminary 
nrrangonieiils  for  a  pejico  was  agreeil  upon.  A  great  meeting  was 
held,  for  the  pui|>o.te  of   ratifying  and  concluding  the  treaty,   at 

*  Molina's  IlUtory  of  Ciiili. 


CHILI. 


2S9 


Quillin,  in  Puren,  on  the  6tb  of  January,  1641.  Among  the  usual 
provisions  for  exchange  of  prisoners,  terms  of  trade,  personal  security, 
&c.  the  Spanish  viceroy  took  the  precaution  to  insert  a  proviso 
that  no  foieigners,  of  any  other  nation,  should  be  allowed  to  land 
upon  tlie  Araucanian  coast.  This  stipulation  was  suggested  by 
former  efforts  of  the  Dutch  to  avail  themselves  of  the  cooperation  of 
the  native  inhabitants,  in  their  attempts  against  the  colonies  in  Chili. 
In  1643,  a  Dutch  fleet  from  Brazil  madf^  the  harbour  of  Valdivia, 
and  fortifications  were  commenced  in  hopes  that  a  foothold  could  be 
thus  secured,  and  the  assistance  of  the  natives  obtained  in  maintain- 
ing it.  The  good  faith  of  the  Araucanians  towards  the  Spaniards 
rendered  this  scheme  abortive. 


RENEWAL   OP   WAR.  —  PEACE  OP   1773.  —  PRESENT    CONDITION 
OP  THE  ARAUCANIANS.  —  THE  REVOLUTION  IN  CHILL  — 
THE  CARRERA8. — REESTABLISHMENT   OP    SPANISH 
POWER.  —  INTERVENTION    OP    SAN    MARTIN. — 
CIVIL    WARS.  —  ATTEMPT  OP   RAMON  PRETHE. 
REBELLION  UNDER  VIDAURRE.  —  ESTAB- 
LISHMENT OP   THE   REPUBLIC. 

After  about  fifteen  years  of  peace  and  prosperity,  difficulties 
again  arose  in  Araucania,  and  both  colonists  and  natives  suffered  all 
the  miseries  of  a  ten  years'  war.  In  the  earlier  campaigns,  during  this 
season  of  hostility,  the  Toqui  Clentaru  was  signally  successful.  He 
defeated  the  Spaniards  in  a  pitched  battle,  seized  the  forts  at  Arauco, 
Colcura,  St.  Pedro,  and  other  posts;  and  crossing  the  Bio-bio,  de- 
iilroyed  the  city  of  Chilian,  with  the  forts  of  St.  Christopher  and 
Estancia  del  Rey.  Nothing  but  the  most  meagre  outline  of  the 
prominent  events  of  this  period  has  been  preserved  in  history. 

During  nearly  fifty  years  of  quiet  which  succeeded,  the  Spaniards 
encroached  farther  and  farther  upon  the  territory  and  liberty  of  the 
natives,  whoso  dissatisfaction  finally  led  to  an  outbreak.  No  perma- 
nent peace  was  effected  before  the  year  1773.  During  this  lonj* 
interval,  the  growth  of  the  settlements  was  retarded,  and  an  enormous 
Vox-.  "I.— 19 


^;:••k■'!^ 


^l 


J90 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


expense  incurred  by  the  government.  Useless  campaigns,  which 
resulted  in  loss  to  both  parties,  and  in  which  no  definite  or  perma- 
nent advantage  was  gained  on  either  side,  furnish  but  a  wearisome 
thcjiie  for  the  historian.  Under  the  government  of  Francisco^avie^- 
de  Morales,  a  histing  peace  was  concluded.  The  toqui,  Curignancu 
having  consented  to  a  conference,  to  be  held,  in  accordance  with  his 
demands,  at  St.  Jago,  exhibited  a  skill  and  firmness  in  negotiation 
equal  to  his  bravery  in  the  field.  The  old  treaties  were  renewed 
and,  in  spite  of  much  opposition,  it  was  agreed  that  thereafter  a  resi- 
dent minister  from  Araucania  should  be  allowed  at  St.  Jago. 

At  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  only  possessions  of  the 
Spaniards  south  of  the  Bio-bio,  were  the  fortification  of  Valdivia  sit- 
uated in  the  Cunchese  territory,  the  island  of  Juan  Fernandez,  and 
tlie  Archipelago  of  Chiloe.  In  the  northern  provinces  of  Chili,  their 
settlements  increased  and  prospered,  while  the  Araucanians  remained 
in  peaceable  and  triumphant  possession  of  their  original  territory  a 
possession  maintained  and  secured  by  more  than  a  century  of  iios- 
tilities.  No  uncivilized  nation,  of  equal  numbers  and  resources,  has 
ever  in  the  history  of  the  world  maintained  so  protracted  a  struggle 
with  European  armies,  provided  with  all  tlie  means  and  appliances 
til"  modern  warfare.  It  is  lemarkable  to  what  a  degree  these  bravo 
and  chivalrous  people  difiered  from  the  generality  of  the  aboriffln;,! 
Americans  in  their  system  of  strategy.  Their  campaigns  did  not 
consist  merely  of  a  .series  of  secret  manoeuvres  and  midniglit  sur- 
jiii-es,  nor  did  they  ofier  battle  only  in  situations  which  v.ould  fur- 
nish read}'  places  for  retreat,  or  suj)ply  coverts  from  which  the 
w.inior  might  discharge  his  weapons  in  safety. 

ill  the  words  of  lioberti!on,  "they  attack  their  enemies  in  the  oi^en 
ficlil;  their  troops  are  disposed  in  regular  order,  and  their  battalioni* 
.(Ivaiicf  to  action,  not  only  with  courage,  but  with  discipline.  Tho 
.North  Americans,  although  many  of  them  have  substituted  the 
fin-arms  of  Europe  in  place  of  their  bows  and  arrows,  are  notwith- 
standing .still  attached  to  their  ancient  method  of  making  war,  and 
carry  it  on  according  to  their  own  sy.stem;  but  the  Chilians  resemble 
the  warlike  nations  of  Europe  and  Asia  in  their  military  operations." 

Such  ardent  feeling.s  of  patriotism  as  have  ever  distinguished  the 
Araucanians,  are  naturally  associated  with  strong  attachment  to  the 
customs  and  manners  of  life  peculiar  to  their  ancestors.  This  is  par- 
ticularly noticeable  in  the  doubtful  success  met  with  by  the  Catliolic 
riii.^sionaries  whose  efic>rt8,  from  time  to  time,  have  been  directed  to 


CHILI. 


291 


their  conversion;  and  in  the  patriarchal  simplicity  whicli  is  still 
conspicuous  in  their  government  and  domestic  relations.  The  prin- 
xjipal  addition  to  their  resources,  and  consequent  change  in  their 
occupation  and  pursuits,  consists  in  the  introduction  of  horses  and 
cattle,  to  the  raising  of  which  their  country  is  well  adapted. 

Tlio  European  colonies  of  Chili  remained  subject  to  Spain  until 
the  period  of  confusion  consequent  upon  Napoleon's  peninsular 
campaigns;  a  period  originating  that  series  of  revolutions,  which 
resulted  in  the  loss  to  the  parent-country  of  all  her  American  con- 
tinental possessions.  By  the  direct  influence  of  the  Count  de  la 
Conquista,  the  captain-general  of  Chili,  in  September  of  1810,  an 
assembly  of  landed  proprietors  was  sum:.  5ned  for  the  purpose  of 
concerting  measures  for  an  overthrow  of  the  Spanish  power.  A  junta, 
having  for  its  president  the  count  himself,  was  accordingly  formed, 
and  an  election  was  ordered  to  take  place  in  the  spring  ensuing. 
Entering  upon  their  office,  not  without  some  bloodshed,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  independent  congress  proceeded  to  annul  the  powers  of 
the  court  of  royal  audience,  and  to  enact  laws  securing  liberty  and 
equality  to  the  inhabitants. 

Three  brothers,  named  Carrera,  who  had  taken  a  prominent  part 
in  opposing  the  partial  system  of  apportioning  the  electoral  dis- 
tricts, after  that  abuse  had  been  corrected  by  the  congress,  fomented 
a  new  disturbance,  and,  gaining  over  to  their  views  a  considerable 
party,  succeeded  in  dissolving,  first,  the  original  junta,  and  after- 
wards the  congress  itself,  leaving  the  entire  administration  of  affairs 
in  the  hands  of  a  council  of  three,  among  whom  was  one  of  their 
ov.n  number. 

Such  a  usurpation  of  power  could  hardly  be  expected  to  remain 
undisturbed  at  a  period  when  the  South  American  colonies  were 
just  throwing  off  the  fetters  with  which  they  had  so  long  been  bur- 
dened. The  disaffection  of  the  inhabitants,  and  the  dissensions  which 
weakened  the  power  of  the  self  created  rulers  of  Chili,  invited  tho 
interposition  of  the  Peruvian  authorities,  and  the  viceroy  of  Lima 
accordingly  dispatched  an  .'irmy,  under  General  Pareja,  to  seize  upon 
llie  country.  That  officer,  in  1S13,  marched  into  Chili,  and,  gaining 
over  the  troops  at  Conception,  proceeded  southward.  He  was  at- 
tacked at  his  encampment,  on  the  night  of  April  12th,  by  the  patriot 
army,  under  one  of  the  Carreras,  and  met  with  such  loss  that  ho 
witlulrcw  to  Chilian. 

(leneral  Carrera,  continuing  to  carry  matters  with  a  high  hand, 


i-^; 


W^:*u  M 


2y2 


TIIK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


Vh 


iiiid  making  use  of  his  military  commission  to  commit  many  acts  of 
tyranny  and  oppression,  was  deposed  from  his  command,  and  the 
office  of  commander-in-chief  was  bestowed  upon  the  celebrated  Col 
onel  O'lliggins.  With  his  brother  Luis  Carrera,  he  was  shortK 
afterwards  taken  prisoner  by  the  royalists.  The  patriots,  under 
their  new  general,  effected  little  or  nothing  until  the  spring  of  1814 
when  such  signal  advantages  were  gained  over  the  invaders,  that  a 
treaty  was  negotiated,  by  the  terms  of  which  the  Peruvian  forces 
were  to  be  withdrawn.  Meantime,  Chili  was  distracted  by  new 
revolutions  and  disturbances.  The  junta  was  dissolved,  and  Lastra, 
the  governor  of  Valparaiso,  was  created  dictator,  only  to  be  dis- 
placed by  the  intrigues  and  influence  of  the  Carreras,  who  had  made 
their  escape  from  captivity. 

The  royalist  general  neglected  to  comply  with  the  treaty,  and 
maintained  his  position  until  autumn,  when  powerful  reinforcements 
having  arrived  from  Peru,  he  overran  the  whole  country,  and  com- 
pellod  the  rebellioua  provinces  to  submit  once  more  to  Spanish 
oppression.  "The  inhabitants  became  the  victims  of  royal  ven- 
geance; arrests,  imprisonments,  punishments,  and  banishments  fol- 
lowed, filling  the  country  with  terror,  suffering,  and  horror.  More 
than  one  hundred  patriots  were  exiled  to  the  desert  island  of  Juun 
Keniandez,  three  hundred  and  eighty  miles  from  the  coast."* 

For  the  final  establishment  of  their  independence,  the  Chilians 
were  indebted  to  foreign  assistance.  An  army  of  republicans,  under 
General  San  Martin,  governor  of  the  province  of  Cuyo,  in  the  early 
part  of  the  year  1817,  was  marcVied  across  the  Andes,  and,  joininor 
the  patriots,  annihilated  the  Spanish  power  in  Chili  for  ever.  The 
sul>sequerit  campaigns  of  the  combined  armies  of  that  country  and 
of  Buenoa  Ayres,  especiaHy  those  connected  with  the  history  of  the 
eslablit:hment  of  Peruvian  independence,  will  be  found  briefly  nar- 
rated in  another  portion  of  our  history. 

In  the  year  1825,  a  constitution  was  fratied  by  the  congress  of 
Chili,  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  which  the  country  has 
been  subsequently  governed. 

O'lliggins  remained  at  the  head  of  affairs  in  Chili  for  the  term  of 
six  years  from  the  period  of  his  elevation,  April,  1817.  lie  was 
generally  esteemed,  both  for  his  military  services,  and  his  good  in- 
tentions in  the  cjndtict  of  the  civil  administration ;  but  the  unsettled 
oondi'ion  of  the  country  in  those  early  days  of  the  republic,  required 

*  Nile*'  Iliatory  of  Suulli  America  and  Muxieo. 


CHILI. 


20S 


a  firmer  hand  in  the  correction  of  abuses,  and  a  more  thorough  over- 
gight  and  control  over  subordinate  officials  than  were  exhibited  V)y 
the  patriotic,  but  negligent  director.  Upon  his  de  position  he  retired 
to  Peru,  where  he  was  received  with  honour  aud  distinction,  and 
where  his  services  in  the  cause  of  republicanism  were  rewarded  by 
an  appropriation  from  the  government. 

For  several  years  after  O'Higgins'  departure,  Chili  was  in  a  dis- 
turbed and  tumultuous  state.  The  successive  presidents  were  unable 
to  maintain  order,  or  to  carry  out  their  plans  for  giving  stability  to 
the  government.  In  1829-80,  civil  war  fairly  broke  out,  the  powers 
of  legislation  being  claimed  respectively  by  the  congress,  with  the 
president,  and  by  a  junta  appointed  by  deputies  sent  in  to  Santiago 
from  the  various  disaffected  towns  and  districts.  The  army,  under 
General  Prieto,  favoured  the  junta,  and  in  April,  1830,  the  con- 
gressional forces,  under  General  Ramon  Freyre,  who  had  been 
O'lliggins'  successor  in  the  directorship,  were  completely  defeated. 
At  a  general  election,  held  immediately  after  the  engagement,  Prieto 
was  chosen  president  of  the  republic. 

Under  tha  vigorous  administration  of  this  officer,  who,  by  the 
advice  and  asisistance  of  his  minister,  the  celebrated  Diego  Portales, 
avoided  the  errors  and  consequent  weakness  of  his  predecessors,  the 
powers  of  government  were  wonderfully  strengthened  and  estab- 
lished. The  organization  of  a  militia  of  the  country  opposed  an 
effectual  check  to  the  enterprises  of  ambitious  military  adventurers; 
judicious  financial  measures  revived  the  public  credit;  and  a  con- 
sistent course  of  firm,  and  necessarily  severe  administration  of  the 
laws,  gave  security  to  life  and  property. 

The  year  1836  was  memorable  for  an  unsuccessful  attempt  by  the 
ex-director,  Ramon  Freyre,  to  bring  about  a  revolution.  He  sailed 
from  Lima  for  Chiloe,  intending  to  disembark  upon  the  southern 
Bca-coast  of  Chili,  but  the  government,  having  notice  of  his  designs, 
anticipated  the  movement.  A  force  was  sent  to  Chiloe,  and  Freyre, 
with  his  ships,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Chilians. 

The  disaffection  of  Colonel  Vidaurre,  second  in  command  in  the 
army  of  Chili,  p:'<)duced  more  disastrous  results.  The  first  demon- 
stration of  n-bcllion  was  the  seizure  of  the  minister,  Portales,  as 
he  was  reviewing  the  troops;  an  outrage  immediately  followed 
by  civil  war,  Vidaurre  attacked  Valparaiso,  but  the  city  was  well 
(lofeiulod,  and  he  saw  his  followers  defeated  and  scattered.  The 
unfortunate  Portales  fell  a  victim  to  the  disappointed  rage  of  his 


•jfe- 


294 


TUB   PEOPLE'S    300K  OF  lIlSTOliY. 


captors.  lie  had  refused  to  lend  himself  to  the  views  of  the  revolu- 
tionists,  although  warned  that  hia  life  depended  upon  hia  decision. 
When  the  fate  of  the  day  was  decided,  the  captive  ininiater  waa  shot 
and,  the  first  firo  not  fully  taking  effect,  was  dispatched  by  bayonets. 
Ilia  body  was  found  lying  in  the  road  when  the  insurgent  forces  had 
dispersed.  The  principal  fomenters  of  this  outbreak  paid  the  forfeit 
of  their  rebellion  with  their  lives. 

The  natural  resources  of  the  Chilian  republic  are  great.  The  soil 
is  exceedingly  fruitful,  and  the  peculiar  conformation  of  the  country 
renders  a  system  of  irrigation  extensively  available.  The  mines  of 
the  precious  metals  are  rich  and  productive,  while  thor^j  of  copper 
are  among  the  most  valuable  ever  discovered.  Good  harbours  and 
a  favourable  geographical  position  afford  facilities  for  an  extensive 
commerce.  Such  advantages,  combined  with  a  delightful  variety 
of  climate  and  scenery,  render  Chili  a  desirable  place  of  residence 
but  its  growth  has  been  hardly  in  proportion  to  its  resources.  It 
appears  that  the  government  has  lately  held  out  new  inducements 
to  immigrants  from  other  countries,  and  has  offered  facilities  for 
their  establishment,  well  calculated  to  attract  the  enterprising  and 
industrious. 


FLORIDA. 


uitlAJtrJtJbli    •!• 

JUAN    PONCK    DE    LEON.  —  HIS    VOYAGE    IN    SEARCH    OP    TUB 
POUNTAIN     OP     YOUTH. — DISCOVERY     OF     PLORIDA. — HIS 
SECOND    EXPEDITION.  —  HIS    DEATH.  —  DISASTROUS    AT- 
TEMPTS OP   AYLLON    AND    NAHVAEZ.  —  HERNANDO    DB 
SOTO.  —  APPOINTED  GOVERNOR  OF  CUBA.  —  HIS  EXPE- 
DITION TO  PLORIDA.  —  MARCH   TO  THE   INTERIOR. 
— CONTESTS  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 

The  beautiful  name  of  Florida,  restricted,  for  more  than  a  century, 
to  a  single  province,  and  now  to  a  single  state,  was,  in  the  early 
Iiistory  of  America,  applied  to  a  vast  extent  of  country,  embracing 
nearly  all  the  eastern  portion  of  the  continent,  between  Canada  and 
Mexico.  In  narrating  the  settlement  of  the  West  Indies,  mention 
lias  been  made  of  Juau  Ponce  de  Leon,  conqueror  and  governor  of 
the  island  of  Porto  Rico.  This  man,  in  addition  to  the  ambition 
and  rapacity  common  to  all  his  class,  possessed,  it  should  seem,  rather 
more  than  their  usual  share  of  fancy  and  credulity.  Deprived,  in 
advanced  age,  of  his  hardly-earned  command,  his  imagination  be- 
came much  excited  by  the  accounts  of  certain  old  Indians,  who 
averred  that  far  in  the  north  was  a  land  abounding  in  gold,  and 
])().<3.ses8ing  a  well  of  such  miraculous  virtue  as  to  restore  youth  to 
those  who  bathed  in  it.  To  discover  this  land  of  treasure,  and  to 
regain  the  youth  which  should  enable  him  to  enjoy  it,  became  at 
once  the  object  of  his  an-  bition.  "Nothing  can  better  illustrate  the 
gorgeous  and  dreamy  iir  agination  of  the  age,  than  the  fact  that  this 
worldly,  practical,  and  experienced  man  now  embarked  a  great  por- 
tion of  his  wealth  in  such  a  chiir.erical  enterprise." 

With  three  ship.*',  manned,  under  a  leader  so  redoubted  and  on  an 


r, 


A-W^ 


I 

1 


206 


TUE  TKOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  1I18TUUY 


Hf^ 


errand  so  alluring,  by  ready  volunteers,  on  tlio  3d  of  March,  1512 
he  set  sail  from  Porto  Rico.  Touching  at  Ounnahani,  and  making 
inquiries  without  succeas,  for  the  desired  region,  li"  he'd  on  to  tho 
north-west,  and  on  the  27th,  came  in  sight  of  land.  On  the  2d  of 
April,  he  anchored  near  the  mouth  of  what  is  now  called  the  St. 
John's  river,  and  landing,  on  tho  following  day,  tr-ok  possession  of 
the  country  in  the  name  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns.  It  was  Palm 
Sunday  (Pascua  Florida),  on  account  of  which,  as  well  as  of  the  gay 
and  flowery  appearance  of  the  country,  he  bestowed  on  it  the  name 
of  Florida.  For  several  weeks  he  stood  southward  along  tho  shore, 
frequently  landing,  and  searching  in  vain  for  his  fountain  of  youth 
and  the  gold  with  which  the  fublcd  land  abounded.  On  tho  14th  of 
June,  he  set  sail  for  home,  and  arrived,  after  tedious  navigation,  the 
victim  of  disappointment,  in  Porto  Rico.  Thence  tho  old  cavalier 
repaired  to  Spain,  where  he  underwent  some  raillery  from  the  wit3 
about  court,  but  (obtained  tho  appointment  of  governor  of  the  newly- 
discovered  region,  and  finally  rSgained  the  command  of  Porto  Rico. 
At  that  island  he  remained  until  1521,  when,  stimulated  by  tho 
renown  of  Cortes,  he  again  fitted  out  two  vessels,  and  made  a  fresh 
voyage  to  tlie  land  of  his  discovery.  With  a  considerable  force,  he 
landed  on  the  coast,  and  was  soon  engaged  in  combat  with  tho  In- 
dians, who  bravely  defended  their  country  against  the  invaders 
Wounded  by  an  arrow,  the  governor  was  carried  on  board  his  ship, 
and  sailed  for  Cuba,  where,  soon  after  his  arrival,  he  expired  from 
the  effect  of  his  wound,  aggravated  by  mental  uneasiness  and  disap- 
pointment.    A  Latin  epitaph  chronicled  his  name  and  exploits: 

"  Muk  sub  hoc  furtis  requiescanl  ossa  Leunii, 
Qui  vicU  faclii  nomitui  moffna  tuts." 
Beneath  tlim  mound  rest  the  bones  of  the  valiant  Lion, 
Who  in  his  deeds  surpassed  the  names  of  tho  famous. 

Subsequent  expeditions  to  this  lunl  of  natural  beauty  and  imagin- 
ary expectation,  for  a  long  ])criod,  prfscnt.  but  a  repetition  of  suffer- 
ings and  disa-stcr.".  Lucas  Vasquoz  ih'  Ayllon,  sailing,  with  three 
hundred  men,  to  what  is  now  known  ns  South  Carolina,  was  cut  off, 
with  nearly  all  his  command,  by  the  luwtile  Indians.  Pamphilo  de 
Narvacz  (deft.'at€'d  and  cai)tnr.  <1  by  Cortes  at  Cein]>oalla,  in  Mexico) 
in  1528,  with  four  hundred  men,  landed  on  the  western  coast  of 
Florida,  and  penetrated,  in  the  vain  hope  of  treasure,  through  the 
marshes,  to  Appalaehce.     A  tliird  of  his  command  perished  of  huii- 


W!i 


„l';ili,H,].,|.;,l(l 


\    > 


FLORIDA. 


297 


rrer  or  were  slain  by  the  Indians,  on  tbeir  return,  and  the  remainder, 
losing  their  way,  were  finally  stopped  by  an  arm  of  the  sea. 

In  this  extremity,  the  almost  hopeless  task  was  undertaken  of 
constructing  vessels  wherewith  to  rSgain  their  ships — of  transmuting, 
in  fact,  the  relics  of  a  cavalcade  into  a  squadron,  if  possible,  forlorner 
still.    Stirrups,  spurs,  and  every  article  of  iron,  wrought  on  a  rude 
forge,  were  converted  into  nails;  the  tails  and  manes  of  the  horses, 
twisted  with  fibres  of  the  palm,  were  used  for  rigging,  and  their  skins 
for  water-tjasks.    The  shirts  of  the  soldiers,  cut  open  and  sewed  to- 
gether, furnished  sails,  and  maize  for  provision  was  won,  by  fighting, 
from  the  Indian  villages.    By  these  ingenious  devices  (the  same 
adopted  by  Gonzalo  Pizarro  in  his  lamentable  expedition  to  the 
Amazon)  five  miserable  barks  were  patched  together,  in  each  of 
which  forty  or  fifty  men,  closely  crowded,  put  to  sea.    All  were 
dispersed  and  swallowed  up  by  tempests;  and  five  men,  the  sole 
survivors,  escaped  to  shore.    These  took  up  their  march  to  the  west- 
ward, and,  passing  from  tribe  to  tribe,  often  detained  as  slaves,  they 
crossed  the  Mississippi,  and  after  a  journey  often  years,  succeeded  in 
reaching  the  Spanish  settlements  in  Mexico.     A  more  wonderful  or 
arduous  feat  of  travel,  all  circumstances  considered,  is  hardly  recorded 
in  history. 

An  expedition  mere  memorable  and  disastrous  still  was  that  of 
Hernando  de  Soto,  already  mentioned  in  the  account  of  the  Conquest 
of  Peru.  That  famous  cavalier,  whose  whole  estate,  on  reaching  the 
New  World,  says  one  of  his  companions,  'was  no  more  but  a  Sword 
and  Buckler,"  had  returned  to  Spain  with  his  thirst  for  achievement 
yet  unallayed,  and  with  a  vast  treasure,  enabling  him  to  provide 
ample  means  for  its  gratification.  Alvar  Nunez,  one  of  the  survivors 
]a.st  mentioned,  had  applied  to  the  crown  for  authority  to  make  con- 
quests in  the  vast  region  he  had  traversed.  This  demonstration, 
combined  with  his  reserved  and  mysterious  demeanou.,  was  supposed 
to  indicate  the  certainty  of  treasures  locked  up  in  their  unknown 
recesses.  De  Soto  accordingly  made  a  similar  application,  and  re- 
ceived the  offices  of  governor  and  captain-general,  boUi  of  Cuba  and 
Florida,  with  authority  for  almost  unlimited  conquest  and  discovery. 

The  wealth  acquired  by  the  plunder  of  Peru  was  lavishly  devoted 
to  his  new  cntevprise.  Nine  hundred  and  fifty  Spaniards,  with  a 
company  of  brave  Portuguese,  who  had  served  in  the  wars  of  Africa, 
wore  enrolled  under  his  standard,  and  in  April,  1588,  he  .sailed,  with 
liis  annatnoMt,  from  San  Lucar.     He  passed  nearly  a  year  in  Cuba, 


^ 


208 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOKY. 


making  fresh  preparations  for  his  enterprise,  and  finally,  on  the  18th 
uf  May,  1539,  with  nine  vessels,  set  sail  from  Havana.  In  a  few 
days  he  landed  at  Tampa  Bay,  where  he  was  soon  involved  in  war 
with  Hiriga,  a  native  cacique,  who  had  suffered  much  wrong  at  the 
hands  of  Narvaez.  Among  the  hostile  Indians  he  discovered  one 
Juan  Ortiz,  a  soldier  of  that  commander,  who  for  many  years  had 
been  captive  with  them,  and  who  proved  exceedingly  useful  as  an 
interpreter.  By  his  good  offices  and  his  acquaintance  with  the  coun- 
try, several  desirable  alliances  with  native  chiefs  were  affected ;  and 
the  army,  as  it  marched  into  the  interior,  was  abundantly  supplied 
by  them  with  provisions.  '■'■ 

The  town  of  Ochili,  situated  on  an  ancient  mound,  and  containing 
five  hundred  houses,  was  taken  by  surprise,  and  the  invaders  pro- 
ceeded to  Vitachucco,  the  capital  of  a  province  of  the  same  name. 
For  three  days  an  apparently  friendly  intercourse  was  maintained 
with  the  inhabitants;  but  on  the  fourth,  as  the  Spaniards  were  quit- 
ting  the  town,  the  chief,  who  marched  by  the  side  of  De  St  to,  sud- 
denly snatched  the  sword  from  his  sheath,  and  attempted  to  run  him 
through  the  body.  His  warriors,  (to  the  number  of  six  thousand 
we  are  told)  posted  in  the  wood,  at  this  signal,  rushed  on  their  guests 
and  attacked  them  furiously ;  but  the  latter,  assisted  by  their  native 
allies,  after  fighting  nearly  all  day,  repulsed  them  with  much  loss. 
Marching  onward,  they  took  the  town  of  Osichili  (Tallahasoche)  after 
a  sharp  fight,  and  thence  proceeded  to  Appalachee.  In  a  swamp 
before  this  place,  the  natives,  gathered  in  great  numbers,  gave  them 
battle,  but  were  defeated,  and  the  town  was  won.  Here  the  Spanish 
general  took  up  his  winter-quarters,  his  vessels  being  brought  around 
into  the  Appalachee  river. 


m- 


1  :! 


FLO  BID  A. 


299 


..I)!' 


>i.W:  il  .IJ 


CTTADT'E'O     TT 
U,  II  i     3,    Si  £i     XX. 


.:::\V^  In^rf:!":;-  v>:  ci."* 


I  I 


fi  -v..  -1 


UELUSITB    REPORT    OF    AN    INDIAN. — DISASTR0V8    MARCH 

THROnOH  THB  INTERIOR. — KINO  TUSCALOOSA. — HIS  STATE 

AND  HAUGHTINESS. — HIS  SECRET  TREACHERY. — GREAT 

BATTLE  AT  MAUYILA. CONFLAGRATION  OF  THE  TOWN 

AND     YICTORT     OF    THE    SPANIARDS. — MUTINOUS 
...       SPIRIT  OF  THE  CAVALIERS. — DESPONDENCY  OF 
I.-  DB  SOTO. — HE  RESUMES  THB  MARCH. 

A  GOOD  harbour,  with  indications  of  gold,  was  reported  by  an 
exploring  party  to  exist  an  hundred  and  eighty  miles  westward;  and 
a  young  Indian  prisoner  also  averred  that  in  his  country,  to  the 
eastward,  was  an  abundance  of  the  precious  metal.  "Whereupon," 
(says  one  of  the  Portuguese  who  wrote  a  history  of  the  expedition) 
"he  described  the  mau:-«  •  '-r  that  Gold  was  dug,  how  it  was  melted 
and  refined,  as  if  he  hs  '  ^  ^  it  done  a  hundred  times,  or  as  if  the 
Devil  bad  taught  him;  insomuch  that  all  who  understood  the  man- 
uer  of  working  in^  tlie  Mines,  averred  that  it  was  impossible  for  him 
to  speak  so  exactly  of  it,  without  having  seen  the  same;  and  so 
the  Relation  of  that  Indian  passed  for  a  real  truth,  because  of 
the  circumstances  wherewith  he  confirmed  it."  Depending  on  this 
strangely  fallacious  testimony,  in  March,  1540,  the  Spanish  force 
again  took  up  its  march  on  an  enterprise  perhaps  the  most  disas- 
trous in  American  history.  No  gold  was  found,  in  many  months  of 
wearisome  travel  through  marsh  and  forest,  and  great  suffering  was 
continually  endured  by  the  explorers  and  inflicted  on  the  natives. 

Many  of  the  caciques,  through  whose  country  the  invaders  passed, 
were  subdued,  and  their  people  reduced  to  slavery.  Chained  and 
loaded  down  like  bea.sts  of  burden,  these  unhappy  creatures  often 
perished  on  the  way,  of  fatigue,  of  hunger,  and  the  bitter  cold  of 
winter.  The  Spaniards  also  suffered  great  extremities;  and  one  of 
them  flung  away  a  bag-full  of  beautiful  pearls,  rather  than  submit  to 
the  drudgery  of  carrying  them  further.  A  loathsome  disease,  occa- 
sioned by  the  want  of  salt,  presently  appeared  among  them,  and 
eventually  carried  oft"  sixty  of  their  number.  Gradually  changing 
their  course  to  the  north  and  west,  the  invaders,  crossing  the  Cher- 


i 


^'^'mk 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


okee  country,  by  the  1st  of  September,  came  to  the  domain  of  a 
chieftain  named  Tuscaloosa,  of  gigantic  size  and  desperate  courage 
who  ruled  over  a  great  territory.  A  river  and  even  a  state  capital 
still  bear  his  name,  which,  probably,  according  to  frequent  custom 
was  identical  with  that  of  his  province. 

This  powerful  chief  <  ^patched  his  son  t.  the  Spanish  commander 
with  a  friendly  message  and  an  invitation  to  his  court.  Seated 
before  his  door,  surrounded  by  attendants,  those  of  the  highest 
quality  being  nearest  his  person,  he  received  the  strangers.  A  huge 
umbrella,  of  deer-skin,  was  held  over  his  head,  and  the  Spaniards 
could  not  avoid  admiring  his  state,  his  gravity,  and  the  splendid 
proportions  of  his  frame.  Strange  and  wonderful  ns  the  fiery  evo- 
lutions of  cavalry,  studiously  displayed,  mu.sL  have  appeared  to  him 
he  maintained  a  composure  as  rigid  as  that  of  the  inca,  under  simi- 
lar circumstances,  nor  would  he  even  rise  to  meet  De  Soto,  though 
he  seated  that  commander  by  his  side,  and  addressed  him  with  court- 
eous civility.  When  the  discoverers  again  took  up  their  march 
he  accompanied  them,  mounted  on  a  strong  war-horse,  and  guided 
them  to  his  chief  capital  of  Mauvila  or  Maubila,  (whence,  doubtless 
the  present  name  of  Mobile,)  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  Alabama 
and  Tombigbee  rivers.  It  consisted  of  some  eighty  houses,  of  im- 
mense size,  some  of  them  sufficing  to  lodge  fifteen  hundred  persons 
and  was  surrounded  by  a  strong  rampart  of  living  trees,  closely 
planted  anu  .  ^penetrably  interwoven. 

All  the  fair  show  of  amity  and  hospitality  which  the  chief  had 
displayed,  were  but  a  cover,  it  seems,  for  deadly  treachery  and  hos- 
tility. Resolved  to  exterminate  the  invaders,  he  had  issued  secret 
charge  to  all  his  'ubjecta  to  repair  to  Mauvila,  and  no  less  than  ten 
tliousand  warriors,  i^  we  may  trust  the  Spanish  account,  were  ilssem- 
bled  in  the  house.'  As  soon  as  the  strangers  arrived  there,  Tusca- 
loosa, abruptly  qui,  ting  his  guests,  entered  his  palace,  and  to  many 
requests,  through  Ortiz,  that  he  would  rejoin  them,  returned  no 
reply.  Dinner  being  finally  ready,  a  more  peremptory  invitation 
was  sent  in,  on  which  an  Indian  chief,  his  eyes  flashing  fire,  stopped 
forth  from  the  royal  i)rernises,  and  cried  fiercely,  "Who  are  these 
robbers!  these  vagabonds  1  who  kccj)  calling  to  my  chief,  Tusca- 
loosa, 'come  out!  come  out!'  with  as  little  reverence  as  if  he  were 
one  of  them?  By  the  Sun  and  Moon,  this  insolence  is  no  longer  to 
be  borne.  Ix't  ua  cut  them  to  pie'^es  on  the  sjiot,  and  put  an  end  to 
their  wickedness  and  tyranny,"    As  he  bent  his  bow,  a  S]>aniar(i  cut 


FLOBIDA. 


801 


him  down,  and  forlli.   +',  swarms  of  warriors,  armed  to  the  teeth, 
poured  out  of  every  lo  Jging. 

A  furious  battle,  witliin  the  town,  immediately  commenced,  the 
soldiers,  under  their  redoubted  leader,  fighting  valiantly,,  and  striv- 
ing to  hold  out  till  the  main  body  of  their  comrades  should  come 
up.  With  some  loss,  they  finally  made  their  way  out  of  the  ram- 
part, where  they  were  joined  by  an  addition  to  their  forces.  For 
three  hours  the  contest  raged  with  great  violence  without,  the  Span- 
iards, charging  with  their  lances,  now  forcing  the  enemy  back  to  the 
gate,  and  now  in  turn  repulsed  by  missiles  from  the  rampart.  Two 
hundred  cavaliers  finally  dismounted,  and,  leading  a  desperate  charge, 
forced  their  way  into  the  town.  The  houses  were  fired,  and  in  the 
midst  of  a  terrific  conflagration,  the  battle  raged  with  unabated 
fury — the  Spaniards,  choked  with  het  ?ind  smoke,  quenching  their 
thirst  from  a  small  pool,  half  blood,  half  water,  near  the  palisade. 
The  rear-guard,  under  Luis  de  Moscoso,  hastened  by  the  sound  of 
the  conflict,  at  last  came  up,  and  after  a  desperate  struggle,  lasting 
for  nine  hours,  victory  fell  to  the  Spaniards^ 

The  whole  town  had  been  destroyed  by  the  conflagration,  in  which 
great  numbers  of  Indians  also  perished — among  them,  it  is  proba- 
ble, Tuscaloosa  himself,  for  nothing  more  was  heard  of  him.  Twenty- 
five  hundred  bodies  wore  scattered  without  the  walls.  Eighty-two 
of  the  Spaniards  had  fallen,  and  seventeen  hundred  wounds  were 
distributed  among  the  survivors.  All  their  baggage  and  treasure 
was  destroyed,  and  their  slaves  had  escaped.  Suffering  grievously 
for  want  of  surgical  aid,  they  dressed  their  woui;cis  (like  tiie  soldiers 
of  Cortes  ii>  his  Mexican  campaigns)  with  the  fat  of  the  dead  In- 
dians. To  do  them  justice,  they  treated  with  kindness  the  wounded 
and  dying  enemy,  of  whom  great  numbers  lay  around.  No  further 
sign  of  hostility  appeared,  for  the  Tuscaloosan  warriors  had  mostly 
perished  or  been  disabled  in  the  battle. 

Lingering  amid  the  ruins  of  Mauvila,  De  Soto  heard  of  the  arrival 
of  ships  upon  the  coast,  supposed  to  be  his  own  fleet,  which  he  had 
ordered  to  rendezvous  at  Pensacola.  To  his  despair  and  indignation, 
he  overheard  certain  of  tlit;  cavaliers  propose  to  ceize  thoin  and  pro- 
ceed to  Mexico.  This  mutinous  disposition,  combined  with  former 
losses  and  misfortunes,  completely  overcanrfe  his  spirit.  "All  his 
toils  seemed  to  have  been  in  vain;  the  sacrifice  of  his  immense  for- 
tune, and  the  fatigues  and  perils  of  his  journey,  had  been  incurred 
for  nothing.     There  was  no  treasure  to  scud  to  Cuba  to  attract  fresh 


k'.  *  f'! 


302 


THE  PEOPLE'S    BOOK  Ol?  HI8T0KV. 


volunteers;  he  became  a  moody  and  disappointed  m  ;  but  in  lijs 
secret  soul  resolved  never  to  return  without  having  accomplished 
something  commensurate  to  his  former  fame  and  anticipations.  But 
the  fire  of  ambitious  enthusiasm  was  burnt  out,  or  quemhed  by  dis- 
appointment. 'He  no  longer  pretended  to  strike  out  any  grand 
undertaking;  but,  stung  with  secret  disappointment,  went  recklessly 
'wandering  from  place  to  place,  without  order  or  object,  as  if  careless 
of  time  and  life,  and  only  anxious  to  finish  his  existence.'"  On 
the  18th  of  November,  1540,  overawing  the  seditious  by  the  stern- 
ness of  his  demeanour,  he  again  set  forth  for  the  interior. 


KJ     JuJi     uutM     dt         w       JLJ     u»u  w     Jb     tL  t« 

DE   SOTO   MARCHES  WESTWARD.  —  LOSSES    FROM    INDIAN    HOSTIl- 
ITY.  —  REACHES  AND  CROSSES   THE   MISSISSIPPI. — MARCHES 
TO   ARKANSAS.  —  RETURNS    TO    THE   MISSISSIPPI. — 
HIS   DEATH    AND   BURIAL.  —  PATE  OP  THE  SUR- 
VIVORS.— THEIR   VOYAGE  TO  MEXICO. 


CnossiNO  the  Black  Warrior  and  Tombigbee  river.",  at  the  end 
of  thirty  days,  De  Soto  arrived  at  the  village  of  Chicaza  (Chickii- 
.«aw'),  where,  for  two  months,  he  encamped,  on  friendly  term.s  with 
the  surrounding  tribes.  At  length,  to  avenge  certain  injurie.<«,  tlie 
latter,  by  night,  made  a  fierce  attack  upon  his  quarters,  which  thoy 
fsred  with  burning  arrows.  They  were  finally  repulsed,  but  the 
.■^p.nniards  lost  forty  men  and  fifly  horses  in  the  fight  and  conflagra- 
tion, and  during  the  remainder  of  the  winter,  the  survivors,  their 
lodixings  destroyed,  suffered  terribly  from  cold.  On  the  1st  of  April, 
th'-y  again  took  up  their  march,  and  on  the  way  lost  fifteen  more  in 
storming  a  strong  Indian  fortres.s,  named  Alibamn^  defended  by  a 
^'ieat  force  of  the  enemy.  Still  pushing  their  toilsome  journey 
through  desolate  and  marshy  regions,  the  Spaniards  at  last  came  upon 
a  mighty  river,  which  Soto  called  the  Rio  Grande,  and  which  is 
now  known  as  the  Mi.««si88ippi. 

Here  the  invaders  took  a  vill.nge,  named  Chisca,  to  the  intense 
rage  of  its  cacique,  a  little,  withered,  diminutive  old  man,  who,  liow- 
cvcr,  had  been  a  mighty  warrior  in  his  youth,  and  who  now  ruled 


FLORIDA. 


ro3 


over  a  great  province.  Within  three  hours,  four  thousand  warrior?, 
we  are  told,  assembled  at  his  command,  and  Soto,  fain  to  appciise 
liim  by  jnelding  up  his  plunder  and  prisoners,  procured,  by  this  net 
of  prudence,  a  grant  of  comfortable  quarters.  After  some  time  spent 
in  recruiting  their  strength,  the  Spaniards  resumed  their  march 
along  the  river,  and  having  found  a  convenient  crossing-place,  en- 
i)loyed  themselves  for  twenty  days  in  building  boats.  A  great 
number  of  Indians,  who  annoyed  them  by  occasional  attacks,  now 
appeared  on  the  river.  "It  was  a  pleasant  sight,"  says  one  of  the 
spectators,  "to  see  them  in  their  canoes,  which  were  most  neatly 
made,  and  very  large,  with  their  Pavilions,  Feathers,  Shields,  and 
Standards,  that  looked  like  a  fleet  of  galleys." 

The  Spaniards,  however,  crossed  the  river*  without  opposition, 
and  resumed  their  march  to  the  westward.  The  natives  whom  they 
encountered,  appear  to  have  been  deeply  impressed  with  the  reli- 
gious ceremonies  of  the  strangers,  and,  during  a  great  drought,  De 
Soto,  erecting  a  vast  cross,  performed  a  solenm  service,  while  many 
thousands  of  the  Indians^  gathering  around  it,  joined  in  a  prayer  for 
rain  to  the  God  of  the  Christians.  "God  in  his  mercy,"  says  the 
pious  Las  Casas,  "willing  to  show  these  heathens,  that  he  listeneth 
to  thoin  that  call  to  him  in  truth,  sent  down,  in  the  middle  of  the 
ensuing  night,  a  plenteous  rain,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  Indians." 
After  many  strange  adventures,  the  invaders  came  to  a  village 
called  Utiangue,  it  is  supposed  on  the  Arkansas,  where,  on  account 
of  the  abundance  of  fuel  and  pi  jvisions,  they  passed  the  winter  in 
tolerable  comfort. 

By  this  time  half  of  the  command  and  nearly  all  the  horses  had 
perished;  and  Soto,  all  hopes  of  conquest  or  high  achievement  for 
the  present  relinquished,  determined  on  returning  to  the  Rio  Grande 
(the  Mississippi),  and  there  building  brigantines,  to  be  dispatched  to 
Cuba  for  suf>plies  and  reinforcements.  In  the  spring  of  1542,  he 
broke  up  his  encampment,  and  marched  eastward,  till  he  came  to 
the  village  of  Guachoya,  situated  probably,  near  the  confluence  of 
the  Mississippi  and  the  Arkansas.  lie  was  soon  on  friendly  terms 
with  the  cacique  of  this  place,  in  whose  fortress  he  took  up  his  quar- 
ters; but,  to  oblige  his  host,  engaged  in  unprincipled  warfare  against 
the  neighbouring  tribes,  at  feud  with  the  latter.  The  building  of  two 
brigantines  was  actively  prosecuted,  and  an  expedition  of  survey 

♦  At  the  Lower  Chickasaw  Bluff,  it  would  seerii,  one  of  the  ancient  crossinjf 
(ilaotw;  between  the  3tth  and  35th  parallels  of  latitude. 


nm 


m 


m 


•.  mM 


"^m 


oO-k 


TIIK   PKOPLE'S   BOOK   OF   DISTORY. 


was  dispatched  across  the  river,  to  endeavour  to  gain  inlelligence  of 
the  distance  and  direction  of  the  sea.  At  the  end  of  eight  days  tho 
messengers  returned,  with  the  report  that  the  whole  country  ap- 
peared to  consist  of  vast  swamps  and  forests,  through  which  the 
river,  with  many  windings,  made  its  way. 

What  with  toil,  disappointment  and  anxiety,  the  unfortunate  Soto 
now  fell  ill ;  but,  to  maintain  his  accustomed  ascendency  ever  the 
natives,  dispatched  an  embassy  to  Quigaltanqui,  the  cacique  of  a 
great  province  bearing  the  same  name,  on  the  opposite  side  of  tho 
river,  with  the  customary  announcement  thai,  he  was  the  offspi  ' 
of  the  Sun,  and  requiring  submission  and  a  visit.  But  the  shrewd 
and  haughty  chieftain  sent  back  the  reply,  "That  whereas  he  said 
he  was  the  Child  of  the  Sunne,  if  he  would  drie  vp  the  Riuer,  be 
would  believe  him;  and  touching  the  rest,  that  he  was  wont  tc  visit 
none ;  therefore,  if  hee  desired  to  see  him,  it  were  best  hee  should 
come  thither;  thac  if  hee  came  in  peace,  hee  would  receive  him  with 
speciall  good  will ;  and  if  in  warre,  in  like  manner  hee  would  attend 
him  in  the  town  where  he  was,  and  for  him  or  any  other  hee  would 
not  shrinke  one  foote  backe."  This  proud  and  magnanimous  re- 
pulse aggravated  the  illness  of  the  disabled  general,  who,  says  the 
old  history,  "had  betaken  himselfe  to  bed,  being  euill  handled  with 
fevers,  and  was  much  aggrieved  that  he  was  not  in  case  to  passe 
presently  the  River  and  seeke  him,  to  see  if  he  could  abate  tliat 
pride  of  his." 

Death,  however,  was  at  hand,  to  relieve  his  humbled  pride,  and 
to  quench  the  feeble  rays  of  hope  and  enterprise  that  might  yet  be 
lingering  in  his  Ijosom.  Seeing  his  end  at  hand,  he  appointed  Luis 
de  Moscoso  to  succeed  him  in  the  command;  and  taking  an  affeciion- 
ate  leave  of  his  surviving  comrades,  entreated  their  prayers  for  his 
soul,  and  charged  them  to  be  loyal  to  the  crown,  and  peaceful  and 
loving  with  one  another.  "Next  day,"  says  the  old  Portuguese, 
"being  the  One  and  Twentieth  day  of  May,  the  Magnanimous,  Vir- 
tuous, and  Valiant  Captain,  Don  Fernando  de  Soto,  Governour  of 
Cuba,  and  General  of  Florida,  yielded  his  soul  to  God."  In  this 
forlorn  and  miserable  situation,  at  the  early  age  of  forty-two,  perished 
one  o*"  the  bravest  and  most  enterprising  leaders  of  adventure  in  the 
Nv  Ji\d — the  gradual  decay  and  melancholy  extinction  of  his 

strangely  contrasting  with  the  suddenness  and  brilliancy  of 
I'i.-ation. 

"ilia  burial  wa£  a  strange  one;  but  not  unworthy  of  his  extraor- 


•VW7 


FLORIDA. 


80.') 


(linary  career  and  of  his  great  discoveries.  The  Spaniards  carefully 
concealed  his  death  from  the  Indians,  fearing  lest  they  should  be 
encouraged  to  rise  against  the  survivors.  Accordingly,  an  evergreen 
oak  was  cut  down,  and  a  hollow  made  i  •  the  centre  of  its  heavy 
trunk.  In  this  singular  coffin  the  body  of  their  valiant  general  was 
carefully  secured,  and  in  the  dead  of  night,  attended  by  the  priests 
and  chief  cavaliers,  was  solemnly  launched  into  the  centre  of  the 
river,  nineteen  fathoms  in  depth.  There,  in  their  rude  receptacle,  a 
hundred  feet  below  the  surface,  and  long  since  covered  with  the 
wreck  and  drift  of  three  centuries,  still  repose  the  remains  of  the 
renowned  adventurer;  and  the  majestic  torrent  of  the  Mississippi, 
rolling  over  the  bones  of  its  discoverer,  forms  a  fitting  and  enduring 
monument  to  his  fame,"* 

The  sv'vivors,  abandoning  the  task  cf  descending  the  river,  after 
the  death  of  their  leader,  once  more  took  up  their  march  to  the 
westward,  hoping  to  reach  the  frontier  settlements  of  Mexico.  From 
May  to  October,  they  pursued  this  toilsome  journey,  penetrating  deep 
into  the  recoss.js  of  the  New  World,  and  gaining,  it  would  seem,  a 
(1\stimt  view  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Considering  the  attempt 
hopeless,  they  finally  retraced  their  steps,  and  in  December,  after 
much  fighting  with  the  Indians,  regained  the  shores  of  the  Mississippi, 
near  Guachoya,  Here  they  recommenced  building  vessels,  using 
every  particle  of  iron,  even  the  chains  of  the  prisoners  rxnd  the  stir- 
rups of  the  cavalry,  in  thd  difficiilt  attempt.  Seven  small  brigantines 
were  at  last  finished,  and  in  these,  on  the  2d  of  July,  1543,  the 
S|innianls,  now  reduced  to  the  number  of  three  hundred  and  fifty, 
embarked.  The  plight  of  this  little  company  (only  a  third  of  their 
original  number)  was  wretched  in  the  extreme,  their  armour  being 
battered  and  rusted,  and  their  gay  attire  of  silk  reduced  to  rags  or 
replaced  by  the  skins  of  wild  beasts. 

After  a  wearisome  voyage  down  the  river,  endangered  by  natural 
(lifTiculties  and  the  continual  attiicks  of  the  Indians,  the  adventurers 
finally  reached  its  outlet,  and  steered  westward,  along  the  c^..  ., 
for  Mexico.  For  fifty-three  days  they  coasted  along,  and  at  last 
after  encountering  mucn  danger  from  a  gale,  made  the  river 
Panuco,  near  the  town  of  that  name,  on  the  frontier  of  Spanish 
Mexico.  Leaping  on  shore,  wild  with  joy,  they  kissed  the  earth 
again  and  again,  and  returned  thanks  to  God  for  their  deliverance. 
They  then  proceeded  to  the  town,  where  all  were  greatly  affected  on 

*  Discoverers,  &c.,  of  Ameriua. 

Vol.  III. —20 


fe-^jf^MMBi, 

■»«:..•    }i::- 

"  f  ^^M 

f:n4 

'Uil^W  ' 

'i  ::.i.:'il$Mt- 

mkm^'' 

V:-  '•^■■» 

Kii^f 

'■'  '  .'^'?"'i 

Hw'i 

806 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF   HI8T0UY. 


belioUling  them;  for,  we  are  told,  "they  wore  blackened,  haggard 
shrivelled,  and  half-naked,  being  clad  only  with  the  skins  of  doer 
bufTaloes,  bears,  and  other  animals,  so  that  they  looked  more  like  wild 
beasts  than  human  beings."  Such  was  the  deplorable  result  of  an 
enterprise  sustained  by  such  ample  means,  undertaken  with  such 
sanguine  confidence,  and  carried  out  with  such  indomitable  courage 
and  perseverance;  but  the  true  interests  of  humanity,  aft^r  all,  per- 
haps suffei  (1  less  than  if  the  full  measure  of  expected  success  had 
been  attained — than  if  the  valiant  Soto  had  rivalled  the  career  of 
Cortes  and  Pizarro,  and  spread  desolation  over  realms  as  wealthy 
and  populous  as  Mexico  or  Peru. 


ClIADT'E'DTTT' 
li  Jl  i    1    Hi  £\     IV. 

EARLY  FRENCH  8ETTLEMBNT8  — BI.OODT  CONTESTS  BETWEEN 

THE  SPANISH  AND  FRENCH  COLONISTS. — SPANISH  MISSIONS. 

—  ENGLISH  DEPREDATIONS  AND  COLONIZATION  ON   THE 

COAST.  —  IN?ASI0N8  OF  FLORIDA  BY  GOVERNOR  MOORE. 


After  the  utter  failure  of  the  last-mentioned  expedition,  so  fatal 
in  its  results  both  to  the  invaders  and  their  victims,  the  persecuted 
natives  of  Florida  enjoj'cd  a  season  of  repose.  The  river  St.  John's 
was  visited,  as  is  supposed,  and  named  May  river,  by  a  party  of 
Huguenots,  who  came  over  from  France,  in  two  vessels  commanded 
by  John  Ribault,  in  1562.  This  company  commenced  a  settlement 
on  the  Carolina  coast,  but  from  their  own  mi.scoiiduct,  and  a  fixilure 
of  supplies  or  assistance  from  home,  the  project  fell  through.  In 
their  attempt  to  return,  in  a  vessel  of  their  own  construction,  they 
were  disabled;  and,  falling  in  with  an  English  ship,  were  taken  to 
England. 

In  1564,  Rend  Lardoniere,  a  companion  of  Ribault,  was  entrusted 
by  Admiral  Coligny,  the  patron  of  the  first  enterprise,  with  the 
command  of  a  new  expedition.  This  party,  which  was  better  pro- 
vided with  the  easentials  for  an  establishment  in  the  wilderness  than 
the  former,  after  landing  at  the  abandoned  fort,  sailed  southward, 
and,  entering  May  river,  commenced  a  settlement  upon  its  left  bank, 
a  few  leagues  from  its  mouth.    A  friendly  intercourse  was  establislied 


FLORIDA. 


807 


with  the  natives,  and  the  colony  might  have  flouriahed,  but  for  the 
insane  ciigerness  with  which  dehisive  hopes  of  obtaining  treasures  of 
the  precious  metals  were  cherished,  to  the  neglect  of  useful  and 
necessary  husbandry.  Before  the  conclusion  of  the  year,  starvation 
stared  the  settlers  in  the  face,  and  they  were  on  the  point  of  abanrloning 
the  country,  when  Ribault  arrived  on  the  coa.st  with  a  well-appointed 
fleet  and  abundant  supplies. 

Hardly  had  the  stiffering  colonists  time  to  rejoice  over  this  season- 
able reinforcement,  when  they  were  called  upon  to  defend  themselves 
against  an  enemy  more  cruel  and  implacable  than  the  savages  in 
whose  territory  they  were  established.  A  Spanish  fleet,  under  Don 
Pedro  Menendez  de  Avila,  appeared  off  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and 
after  an  attempt  at  the  seizure  of  some  of  Ribault's  ships,  whicW  were 
moored  without  the  bar,  sailed  southward,  and  entered  the  harbour 
of  St.  Augustine.  On  this  occasion  was  founded  the  town  of  that 
name,  whose  ancient  and  dilapidated  walls,  narrow  streets,  and  Eu- 
ropean architecture,  notwithstanding  modern  improvements,  still 
carry  us  back  to  the  earliest  settlement  of  the  country.  The  large 
force  under  Menendez  had  come  out  with  the  double  purpose  of 
foiminc;  a  Spanish  colony  upon  the  long-neglected  coast  of  Florida, 
and  of  destroying  the  heretics  who  had  fled  from  persecution  in  the 
old  country. 

Ribault  did  not  wait  for  another  attack,  but,  hopeful  of  securing 
the  advantage  by  an  early  movement,  sailed  in  pursuit  with  his  whole 
available  force.  He  was  unfortunately  driven  southward  by  a  storm, 
and  met  with  the  loss  of  his  entire  fleet  on  the  dangerous  and 
treacherous  coast.  Menendez  took  advantage  of  the  interval  that 
must  elapse  before  the  French  could  threaten  his  position  by  land, 
to  make  a  rapid  advance  on  the  unprotected  fort  on  May  river. 
No  effectual  resistance  could  be  made,  and  the  whole  of  the  occu- 
pants were  taken  captive  or  slain  in  the  encounter.  All  tht  men 
who  were  made  prisoners  were  delilierately  put  to  death,  and  near 
the  place  where  the  bodies  were  left  hanging  on  a  tree,  a  monument 
was  placed,  inscribed  with  the  following  words:  "Not  as  Frenchman, 
but  as  heretics." 

Broken  down  and  disheartened  by  their  misfortunes,  the  ship- 
wrecked party  of  Ribault,  although  numbering  not  far  from  six 
hundred  men,  made  no  effort  at  retrieving  their  fortunes.  It  was 
determined  to  proceed  by  land  towards  St.  Augustine,  and  to  make 
an  unconditional  surrender  to  the  Spaniards.     "They  formod  \\\\>> 


Mill  11 


'•Ti 


if 


IMJH 


THE   i'KorLE'8  BOOK  OF  III8T0BY. 


two  cotnpmn'os;  the  first,  conaisting  of  two  hundred  men,  proceed,,! 
dp  tlio  coast  as  fur  as  Mataiizus  Inlet.  Here  they  were  met  by  Mo- 
iieiidez,  who  liad,  with  forty  soldiers,  sailed  up  the  sound  to  recon- 
noitre. A  french  soldier  was  sent  across  the  inlet  to  learn  wliat 
terms  could  be  obtained;  the  messenger  was  detained.  'I'ho  boat 
wius  then  sent  across  ftjr  ton  Frenchmen,  who  were  taken  Jud  a 
.sand-hill  and  n  irdercd.  And  in  this  tn;\nner  were  the  two  imndred 
u\cn  decoyed  across  the  stream  by  tens,  and  all  massacred  and  loft 
<»n  tlie  sand,  to  bo  devoured  by  the  birds  and  beasts  of  prey."* 

llibault,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  of  his  foUowons,  gave  them- 
selves up  a  few  days  subsequent,  only  to  share  the  fate  of  their  mm- 
dered  countrymen.  The  remainder  of  the  party  fortified  thcni.selvos 
upon  the  coast,  and  were  engaged  in  the  construction  of  a  vessel 
from  the  wrecks  of  the  fleet,  when  they  were  set  upon  by  Mtinendcz 
and  driven  from  their  position.  Terms  of  favour  were  now  prolleroj 
by  the  conqueror,  and  were  accepted  by  all,  except  a  few  who  still 
foared  to  trust  to  the  promises  of  the  treacherous  Spaniard,  and 
who  betook  theraaolves  to  the  wilderness  in  the  interior,  where  they 
j)robably  perished. 

The  outrages  perpetrated  upon  the  ill-fated  French  colony  were 
in  a  measure  revenged  in  1569,  by  a  private  expedition,  fitted  out 
and  commanded  by  the  noted  Dominique  de  Gourges.  With  a  small 
but  effective  force  of  adventurous  volunteers,  he  came  upon  the 
coa."!,  and  under  the  guidance  of  one  of  the  old  companions  of  Lardu- 
niere,  attacked  the  forts  which  had  been  taken  from  the  French 
four  years  previous.  These  posts  were  surprised  and  carried  by 
storm,  although  garrisoned  by  a  superior  Spanish  force,  and  litil.; 
mercy  was  shown  to  those  who  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  a.ssailanus. 
The  remains  of  several  of  those  put  to  death  by  Menende/i,  still 
hanging  upon  the  trees,  were  taken  down  and  buried  by  the  orders  of 
Gourges,  who  directed  Spanish  prisoners  to  be  hung  in  their  places, 
and  affixed  this  laV)el,  "Not  as  Spaniards,  but  as  murderers."  Hav- 
ing dismantled  the  forts,  the  invaders  made  good  their  retreat,  and 
sailed  for  France. 

Menendez  remained  in  undisturbed  possession  of  St.  Augustine, 
and  as  no  farther  attempt  was  made,  for  a  long  period  of  years,  by 
any  other  European  nation  to  encroach  upon  the  Spanish  possessions 
on  this  coast,  full  opportunity  was  afTorded  for  carrying  out  the 
views  of  the  colon ista  in  the  propagation  of  their  faith  among  tlie 

.  •  Williams's  Florida. 


FLOUll)  A. 


809 


nntiven,  and  the  extension  of  the  national  influence.  The  really 
zealoufl  and  self-devoted  exertions  of  the  Catholic  inisaionarics,  in 
furtherance  of  this  abject,  contrast  pleasingly  with  the  bloo.ly 
events  which  preceded  the  successful  devolojiment  of  their  peculiar 
system.  They  dispersed  themselves  far  and  wide  among  the  Indians, 
iind,  trusting  entirely  to  their  good  faith,  pa.s.scd  their  lives  in  seclu- 
oion  from  society,  and  in  arduous  labours  for  the  civilization  and 
conversion  of  the  natives.  They  succeeded  to  an  astonishing  extent 
in  gaining  over  the  confidence  of  their  rude  entertainers,  and  from 
tlie  Atlantic  sea-coast  far  into  the  unexplored  wilderness  of  the  west, 
numberless  tribes  were  brought  to  at  least  a  nominal  acceptance  of 
the  Catholic  faith. 

In  1586,  and  again  as  late  as  1665,  the  Spanish  settlements  of 
Florida  suffered  from  the  attacks  of  the  wild  and  lawles-s  Engli.sh 
cruisers.  On  the  latter  occasion,  the  buccaniers,  under  Davis,  seized 
and  plundered  the  town  of  St.  Augustine,  and  not  long  afterwards 
an  p]nglish  colony  was  founded  on  the  banks  of  May  river.  In  a 
CDiintry  like  Florida,  where  the  building  materials  arc  mostly  of  ii 
pcrislmble  nature,  and  where  the  mildness  of  the  climate  precludes 
the  necc!«ity  for  any  impression  on  the  soil  in  the  erection  ot'  houses, 
a  few  years  of  desertion  suffice  to  obliterate  nearly  every  trace  of  a 
settlement.  A  new  growth  of  woods,  frequently  of  a  different  char- 
acter from  the  original,  serves  to  mark  the  boundary  of  old  cleared 
fields;  but  the  traveller  unaccustomed  to  these  signs  of  former  occu- 
pancy, would  scarcely  suppose,  while  passing  through  what  appears 
to  him  the  primeval  forest,  that  the  wilderness  around  hitn  had 
ever  echoed  to  the  busy  sounds  of  civilized  life. 

The  uncertain  tenure  of  property  in  Florida,  subject  as  it  was, 
afler  hostile  nations  of  Europe  had  began  to  colonize  its  coast,  to 
frequent  changes  of  jurisdiction,  brought  about  many  of  thotr 
changes.  Thriving  villages  or  towns,  inhabited  by  French,  Spanish, 
or  Knglish  colonists,  were  by  turns  abandnntMl  by  their  proprietors, 
and  scarce  a  vestige  now  remains  of  their  existence. 

The  commencement  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  Florida,  was 
memorable  for  its  inva.«sion  by  Governor  Moore  of  South  Carolina. 
Ilis  first  enterprise  was  signally  disastrous.  By  a  force  of  more  than 
a  thousand  men,  consisting  of  whites  and  Creek  Indians,  in  nearly 
equal  proportions,  the  Spanish  settlements  were  assailed  by  sea  and 
land.  ?A'ery  thing  promised  the  eoniplote  subjugation  of  the  colo- 
nies, when  the  alarm  was  given  that  powerful  reinforcements  had 


'    5*^4 


310 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF   HISTOIIY 


h 


:irriveJ  from  Spain.  Two  armed  vessels  appeared  oITthe  coast,  and 
Moore  effected  an  immediate  retreat,  leaving  his  fleet  and  stores  a 
j)rey  to  the  enemy.  His  principal  officer,  Colonel  Daniels,  to  whose 
energy  the  first  successful  operations  of  the  expedition  were  due 
was  at  this  time  absent,  having  been  sent  to  Jamaica  for  a  supply  of 
artillery,  prior  to  an  attack  on  the  fort  of  St.  Marks,  He  returned 
ojily  to  find  the  position  of  the  English  abandoned,  and  the  Span- 
iards in  complete  possession. 

The  second  attempt,  in  1704,  was  upon  the  Spanish  and  Indian 
towns  in  West  Floridtu  Unable  to  procure  assistance  from  the  legis- 
lature of  the  territory,  Moore  collected  a  few  companions,  and,  pro- 
ceeding to  the  head-quarters  of  the  different  tribes  of  friendly  Creeks 
readily  secured  their  cooperation  in  the  proposed  campaign  against 
thoir  old  enemies,  the  Yemasees,  Appalaches,  &c.  A  post  known 
iis  Lewis'  Fort,  and  garrisoned  by  a  considerable  body  of  Spaniards 
under  command  of  Juan  Mexia,  the  colonial  governor,  was  the  first 
point  of  attack.  Mexia  imprudently  gave  battle  without  the  walls 
(if  the  fort,  and  was  completely  overpowered.  His  followers  were 
mostly  slain,  and  the  place  wiis  destroyed.  Following  up  their  ad- 
vantage, tlie  invaders  ravaged  the  whole  of  that  portion  of  the 
country,  breaking  up  the  missionary  establishments,  and  dispersing 
or  destroying  the  Spanish  occupants.  Vast  numbers  of  the  native 
inhabitants  were  carried  off  as  prisoners,  and  those  who  were  not 
doomed  to  slavery,  were  settled  in  the  vicinity  of  the  English  colony 
to  the  northward  of  the  Savannah  river.  The  power  of  the  Span- 
iards was  afterwards  mostly  confined  to  their  settlements  in  East 
Florida.  A  garrison  was  nevertheless  maintained  by  them  at  St 
Marks  on  the  Appalauhe. 


FLOBIDA. 


811 


C  n  A  F  X  EH    V  . 

THE  YEMASEES. — INVASION  OF  FLORIDA    BY   OGLETHORPE. — 
CESSION  TO   GREAT  BRITAIN.  —  DR.  TURNBULL'S  COLONY. 
— RECESSION  TO  SPAIN. — INVASION  OP  EAST  FLOR- 
IDA PROM  THE  UNITED  STATES  — ACQUISITION 
OF    FLORIDA    BY    THF    UNITED    STATES. 

In  the  frontier  Indian  war  of  1717,  the  Yamasees  of  Florida,  who 
bad  at  one  period  favoured  the  English  colonies  up  the  coast,  were 
drawn  into  the  general  combination  of  the  southern  tribes.  After 
tlieir  defeat  by  General  Craven,  they  settled  in  East  Florida,  near 
their  Spanish  allies  and  protectors.  They  were,  however,  treated 
with  severity  by  the  territorial  governor,  Ayola,  and  were  compelled 
to  abandon  their  first  settlements,  where  they  had  built  and  planted, 
and  to  take  up  their  quarters  farther  southward.  At  the  period  of 
this  compulsory  migration,  the  less  able-bodied,  together  with  large 
numbers  of  women  and  children,  were  left  upon  Amelia  Island. 
'•These,"  says  Williams,  "were  presently  discovered  by  the  English, 
who  pursued  the  fugitives  in  their  launches,  on  which  they  had 
mounted  swivels;  these  they  brought  to  bear  on  the  miserable, 
starving  rabble,  who  had  not  a  tree  or  bush  to  protect  them,  but 
were  murdered  in  cold  blood.  Four  hundred  were  thus  slaughte/ed ; 
and  of  three  thousand  that  now  survived,  more  than  two-thirds 
died  in  less  than  a  year,  by  hunger  and  diseases." 

In  1719,  the  fort  at  Pensacola  was  the  scene  of  some  hard  fighting 
between  the  French  and  Indians,  from  Louisiana,  and  the  Spanish 
tnirrison.     The  fort  was  taken  and  retaken :  but  after  several  severe 

o  ' 

engagements,  both  on  sea  and  land,  it  finally  fell  into  the  hands  of 
ihe  French,  and  was  destroyed. 

The  enmity  of  more  dangerous  neighbours  at  the  north,  was  subse- 
quently excited  to  active  hostilities.  The  Indian  allies  of  the  Span- 
iards were  in  the  luibit  of  making  incursions  on  the  English  frontier, 
;ind  in  1725,  particularly,  the  Yennisee  warriors,  (it  is  said,  by  the 
direct  commission  of  Governor  Malina,)  committed  fearful  excestses 
uj)on  the  Georgian  settlors.  Causes  of  complaint,  indeed,  were  not 
\vo.nting  on  the  oilier  yide,  particularly  in  the  evident  tendency  of 
the  growing  English  colony  to  encroach  upon  Spanish  territory 


'm 


mi 


III 

Hi 


vr^-,, 


:i^.^ 


^ 


-i 


812 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


The  marauding  expedition  of  the  Yemasees  was  promptly  revenged. 
A  body  of  volunteers  and  Indians,  commanded  by  Colonel  Palmer 
marched  southward,  and  destroyed  most  of  the  Spanish  settlements 
north  of  St.  Augustine. 

A  period  of  comparative  quiet  ensued,  but  an  old  ground  of  quar- 
rel still  remained.  Many  of  the  negro  slaves  employed  on  the 
English  plantations  continued  to  find  an  asylum  in  Florida,  and  the 
refus;d  of  the  Spaniards  to  give  them  up  to  their  owners,  combined 
with  the  recollection  pf  other  wrongs,  finally  determined  the  colonies 
upon  a  systematic  invasion  of  the  peninsula.  The  plan  was  set  on 
foot  by  Goverjoor  Oglethorpe,  the  most  noted  of  the  pioneers  of 
Georgia ;  and,  as  the  coast  was  clear  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  St. 
John'.s,  he  collected  at  that  point  (in  May,  1740)  not  far  from  two 
thousand  whites  and  Creek  Indians.  Marching  thence,  he  seized 
upon  the  Spanish  forts,  Diego  and  Mosa,  but  did  not  follow  up  his 
advantage  with  sufficient  celerity  to  make  an  effective  demonstration 
upon  the  capital.  Delay  in  the  operations  of  the  English  naval  foree 
also  gave  opportunity  for  the  introduction  of  supplies  of  artiller\' 
and  provisions  into  the  harbours.  No  impression  could  be  made 
upon  the  Spani.sh  fortifications  by  storm  or  battery,  and  in  the 
attempt  to  reduce  the  place  by  siege,  sickness  broke  out  among  the 
troi)j)s,  and  compelled  a  retreat  to  Georgia.  In  reUiliation  for  this 
invasion,  a  large  force,  concentrating  at  St.  Augustine,  and  placed 
under  command  of  ^fanuel  Monteano,  governor  of  East  Floricl) 
jirooeeded  in  1742  to  attack  the  Paiglish  colonies.  With  no  le.s.s  tliau 
thirty-two  ve.s.sel<«,  bearing  some  three  thousand  men,  the  governor 
entered  the  Altamaha.  Oglethorpe  was  driven  from  his  position 
on  the  island  of  St.  Simon's,  but  retreating  to  Frcderica,  he  made  an 
efiectual  stand  against  the  jrreatly  superior  fi)rce  brought  to  bear 
ujion  him.     Ni'thmg  wa.s  ellected  by  the  expedition. 

At  the  period  of  the  cession  of  Florida  to  the  British  crown,  in 
P<)3,  its  prosperity  had  completely  declined.  The  few  remainiiu'- 
Spanish  inliabitaiits  for  the  most  part  removed  to  the  West  Irniirs 
leaving  the  e.\j)eriment  of  eoloni.  Awn  to  immigrants  from  (Ireat 
Britain.  One  of  the  most  remarkable  transactions  in  tlie  modern 
history  of  the  couni-ry  is  connected  with  the  introduction  of  this  new 
j>opulation.  One  Dr.  Turnbull,  in  17»)7,  j)roeecded  to  the  Levant, 
and  cnj.'aged  a  considerable  number  of  Greek  families  to  ae.comjiany 
him  to  Florida.  'I'oiiehing,  on  his  return,  at  Corsica  and  Minon'.i 
lie  procured  a  further  supply  of  emigrants,  and  sailed  for  the  N*  vv 


FLOBIDA. 


818 


World  with  about  fifteen  hundred  souls  aboard  his  vessels.  A  term 
of  three  years'  service  on  their  part  was  to  be  the  equivalent  for  the 
expense  of  transportation,  of  present  support,  and  of  a  bounty  of 
land  at  the  expiration  of  the  contract. 

A  grant  of  lands  was  obtained  near  Mosquito  inlet,  and  plantations 
were  laid  out  on  an  extensive  scale.  The  principal  crop  raised, 
exclusive  of  the  necessary  reservations  for  supplying  the  colony  with 
food,  was  indigo,  and  this  proved  exceedingly  profitable  to  the  pro 
iirietor.  Taking  advantage  of  the  ignorance,  simplicity,  and  isolated 
position  of  his  employees,  the  doctor  ere  long  reduced  them  to  a 
condition  of  hopeless  servitude.  For  nine  years  they  were  kept  at 
the  severest  labour,  on  the  most  scanty  allowance  of  food,  and  nearly 
destitute  of  clothing.  Cruel  and  excessive  punishment  was  inflicted 
for  any  neglect  in  their  tasks,  or  for  any  trifling  offence  against  their 
tyrant  or  his  overseers.  At  the  period  of  their  emancipation,  in 
1776,  their  numbers  were  reduced  to  about  six  hundred. 

The  manner  in  which  they  obtained  their  freedom  is  very  graph- 
ically described  by  Mr.  J.  L.  Williams  in  his  history  of  Florida.  It 
appears  that  several  Englishmen,  while  on  a  visit  to  New  Smyrna, 
(the  name  of  Turnbull's  settlement,)  were  engaged  in  conversation 
respecting  the  imposition  practised  on  the  immigrants — "some  of 
them  made  the  remark  that,  if  the  people  knew  their  rights,  they 
would  not  suffer  under  such  slavery.  This  was  remarked  by  an 
intelligent  boy,  who  told  it  to  his  mother.  The  old  lady  summoned 
a  council  of  her  friends  in  the  night,  and  they  devised  a  plan  to  gain 
more  intelligence."  Emissaries  were  secretly  dispatched  to  St.  Au- 
gustine, who,  having  communicated,  by  good  fortune,  with  the 
attorney-general,  Mr.  Younge,  and  received  encouragep''.ent  from  him, 
returned,  and  reported  to  their  companions. 

It  was  promptly  concluded  to  march  in  a  body  to  St.  Augustine, 
nnd  to  claim  the  protection  of  the  authorities.  Tn  the  absence  of 
Turnbull,  the  scheme  was  accomplished.  "The  women  and  children, 
with  the  old  men,  were  placed  in  the  centre,  and  the  stoutest  men, 
armed  with  wixjden  spears,  were  placed  in  front  and  rear.  Tn  this 
onlor  they  set  off  like  the  children  of  Israel,  from  a  place  that  had 
proved  an  Egypt  to  them.  So  secretly  had  they  conducted  the 
transaction,  that  they  had  proceeded  some  miles  before  the  overseers 
discovered  that  the  place  was  deserted.  Some  of  these  were  well 
pleased,  and  joined  thorn.  Others  informed  the  tyrant,  who  was  at 
siiiiie  distance  from  the  jilace.     lie  rode  after  the  fugitivos,  and  ovrr- 


1 1 


IV 


IJ,  '■ 


!.i^ 


Ki: 


I 


su 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


took  them  before  they  reached  St.  Augustine,  and  used  every  exer- 
tion  to  persuade  them  to  return,  but  in  vain."  The  rights  of  tliese 
persecuted  people  were  speedily  established,  and  a  tract  of  land  in 
the  north  part  of  the  city  was  granted  to  them  by  the  authoritica 
Their  descendants,  at  this  day,  form  no  inconsiderable  portion  of  the 
inhabitants  of  St.  Augustine. 

When  Spain  came  again  into  possession  of  Florida,  at  the  close  of 
the  war  of  American  revolution,  these  Greeks  and  Minorcans  were 
almost  the  only  portion  of  the  population  that  remained  in  the  coun- 
try. The  establishments  of  the  English  were  generally  deserted,  anrl 
in  a  few  years  the  greater  portion  of  the  cultivated  districts  were  little 
less  a  wilderness,  than  when  white  men  first  set  foot  on  their  shores. 

Movements  were  set  on  foot  by  the  government  of  the  United 
States,  in  the  year  1811,  for  the  acquisition  of  the  Floridas  from 
Spain.  Commissioners  were  appointed  to  confer  with  the  governor 
of  Pensaoola  relative  to  a  cession  of  the  western  province,  and  powers 
to  proceed  to  hostile  mesisures,  both  respecting  East  and  West  Florida 
were  conditionally  conferred  upon  them :  the  intention  of  our  gov- 
ernment being  to  prevent  at  all  risks  the  acquisition  of  Florida  by 
any  other  foreign  powev.  Mistaken  reports  concerning  this  proceecl- 
ing  became  prevalent;  and,  in  accordance  with  the  idea  that  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  United  States  was  to  be  at  once  forcibly  extended 
over  the  peninsula,  a  large  number  of  Georgians  and  American 
inhabitants  of  Florida,  congregated  near  St.  Mary's,  and  organized 
plans  for  an  immediate  hostile  demonstration.  Proceeding  by  water 
to  the  Spanish  town  of  Fernandina  on  Amelia  Island,  their  formi- 
dable array  induced  an  immediate  capitulation.  The  revolutionists 
had  made  appointments  for  a  provisional  government,  under  wliich 
John  II.  Mcintosh  jussumed  the  office  of  director. 

I'he  Seminole  Indians  at  first  pro(Ti*red  their  a.ssistance  to  the  rev- 
olutionary pfirty,  but,  from  motives  of  humanity,  the  leaders  of  the 
movcmr-.it,  acting  now  in  concert  with  General  Mathews,  one  of  the 
commissi  Miers  deputed  to  West  Florida,  declined  availing  thcrn.'ielves 
of  their  services.  The  cohsequence  was,  that  the  Indians  took  un 
arm 'in  favour  of  the  Spanish  government,  an<l  tlieir  depredations. 
and  tho  expeditions  fitted  ovi  against  them,  formed  the  nuxst  import- 
ant incidents  in  the  subsequent  hostilitie?..  The  question  of  the 
invasion  was  made  a  matter  of  diplomatic  adjustment  lutwcen  the 
^'i.vtTiiment.s  of  Spain,  Great  Britain  ai\d  the  Tinted  States.  The 
overt  acts  of  hobtility  were  di.savowed  by  the  latter  power,  and,  in 


FLORIDA. 


815 


>'H 


May,  1813,  the  few  remaining  American  troops  were  withdrawn  from 
the  country,  an  amnesty  being  at  the  same  time  proclaimed  by  the 
legitimate  government,  for  nil  otTences  connected  with  the  attempted 
revolution.  During  the  long  period  of  desultory  hostilities,  the  set- 
tlements and  plantations  of  East  Florida  were  extensively  destroyed. 

During  the  last  war  with  Great  Britain  the  western  districts  of 
Florida  were  made  the  scene  of  some  important  encounters,  and  many 
interesting  particulars  of  the  Indian  campaigns  of  that  period  are 
related,  the  natives  having  generally  been  enlisted  against  the  United 
States.  About  the  middle  of  November,  1814,  the  town  and  fortifi- 
cations at  Pensacola,  strongly  garrisoned  by  Spanish  and  English 
troops,  were  taken  by  the  Americans,  under  General  Jackson,  and 
the  military  works  were  destroyed.  The  Seminoles  continued  hostile 
to  the  Americans  after  the  conclusion  of  war  with  England,  and 
proved  formidable  enemies  tc  the  border  settlers,  until  the  year  1818, 
when  their  territo.y  in  the  northern  and  western  d^tricts  of  Florida 
was  completely  overrun  by  the  forces  under  command  of  General 
Jackson.  In  this  war  the  negroes,  who  for  many  years  had  been 
increasing  in  number  by  accessions  of  fugitives  from  the  plantations 
of  the  adjoining  states,  enacted  an  important  part.  They  had  formed 
extensive  settlements  in  the  Indian  territory,  and  in  defence  of  their 
jiossossions  and  fortifications,  not  unfrequently  fought  with  desperate 
courage  and  determination.  It  appeared  that  the  Indians  had  been 
furnished  with  supplies  and  munitions  of  war  by  the  Spanish  author- 
ities at  Pensacola,  and  in  the  month  of  May,  1818,  General  Jackson, 
with  little  opposition,  again  took  possession  of  the  town  and  fortifi- 
cations. The  governor  and  the  Spanish  garrison  were  compelled  to 
leave  the  country. 

The  Floridas  were  ceded  to  the  United  States  by  treaty  concluded 
with  Spain,  in  the  summer  of  1821,  and  Gerieral  Jackson  received 
the  appointment  of  <,M)vernor  of  the  newly-acquired  country.  In  the 
following  year,  it  was  regularly  constituted  a  territory,  with  appro- 
priate representative  powers.  The  population  is  so  sparse  that  Flor- 
ida would  j)r()bably  have  enjoyed  at  least  equal  prosperity,  had  she 
continued  to  remain  under  a  territorial  government.  In  the  opinion 
of  many  of  the  most  intelligent  inhabitants,  the  satisfuciion  of  enjoy- 
ing the  independent  position  of  a  sovereign  state  has  hardly  com- 
pensated for  the  increased  expiMulituios  rendered  necessary  by  the 
change  of  government.  This  state  was  admitted  into  the  Union  at 
the  ses-iion  of  Congress  held  in  the  year  iSAo. 


i»*+t,,,,| 


^1) 


•     !  f  !'■''■■  ■ 


^outlj  l^mmtau  ^tbolutions* 


IThe  Revolutions  of  Mexico,  Peru  and  Chili,  an^  the  -erection  of  those  Protinni 
into  inde])endent  Slates,  have  l<een  alreo'Jjf  detcrii'fJ  in  the  preceding  articles.] 


>  ^V^/^^i^^^^i^^^rv 


COLOMBIA. 


C 


!;^  T  J^i  H     I . 


LOYALTY  OP  TV V.  SPANISH  COLONIJIS  — AKROOANCE  AND  TYRANNY 

OP  THEIR  RCLISPS, CAUS-S  OP  T  1!  K  REVOLUTION. — THK 

KSTAULlfSnM^.NT  Of  JF  N'TAS,—- Jf  A  SSACRE  AT  QUITO. - 
THE    JUMA    0?    CaRACCAS    IN    VENEZUELA. — 
COVMENfliMENT    OP    HOSTILITIES. — DE- 
CLABiTION   OP   I  NDEFKNDENCB. 

Tiii.  principle  of  loyLi-iy  and  national  feeling,  so  inveterate  in  tiie 
Spanish  oHaracter,  bad  prccserved  to  Spain  the  attachment  of  lier 
iiuiiuTous  f'tloaics  tlirough  centuries  of  oppression  and  misgovern- 
mint;  and  i.^  thing  except  the  most  fatuous  arrogance,  cruelty,  and 
obstinacy  on  tliO  part  of  that  nation  and  its  colonial  agents,  could 
po&siMy,  in  8p  brief  a  space  of  time,  ha%'0  ali;^nated  people  so 
att.'U'hc  I  to  the  land  of  their  origin.  When  the  distracted  and  im- 
pnvcrishod  condition  of  the  mother-country,  at  the  commencement 
ofiUs  contests  ivith  the  French  under  Napoleon,  afforded  the  fairest 
opjiortunity  of  throwing  off  the  yoke,  so  far  from  availing  them.selvcs 
of  it,  the  Snaiii.«h- American  colonies,  with  devoted  lovaltv,  Ion"- 
continued  to  furnish  supplies  of  treasure  to  the  .state,  and  to  exhibit 
the  liveliest  interest  in  be.-alf  of  the  fortunes  of  their  rulers. 

In  defaiiU,  however,  of  any  settled  government  in  Spain,  the  coin- 
ni.st.s,  in  emulati(m  of  their  countrymen  at  home,  began  to  agitato  the 
fotrnation  of  jnnt'ts  or  as.sociations  for  mitional  defence;  and  tlio.se 
a'.ti  nipUs  being  suppressed  with  grr.i    severity  by  the  colonial  g       -'i- 


r 


SPANISH-AMERICAN    REVOLUTIONS. 


817 


ors,  first  sowed  the  seeds  of  disaffection.  The  viceroys  of  New  Gnm- 
adrt  and  Peru,  combining  their  forces,  revenged,  wilh  savage  ferocity, 
V  pcheme  of  this  kind  matured  at  Quito,  committing  a  massacre  of 
tl.foe  hundred  of  the  citizens,  and  dehvering  up  the  town  to  the 
iiioine  of  a  ferocious  soldiery.  This  and  other  similar  acta  of  oppres- 
sion, s'.iv.niar  to  state,  did  not  suffice  completely  to  alienate  the 
,f  jtioiii  ) "  the  people  from  the  provincial  government;  but,  seeing 
the  apparently  complete  ascendency  of  France,  the  colonists  were 
anxious  to  adopt  measurea  to  secure  their  independence  against  the 
jncroachmcnts  of  the  latter.  Actuated  by  this  feeling,  the  citizens 
of  Car.'X'crf  s  in  Venezuela,  in  the  year  1810 — proceeding,  however, 
in  thi;  name  of  Ferdinand  VII. — deposed  their  colonial  officers,  and 
appoiiited  a  junta  of  their  own. 

Tlio  i!  iprudent  arrogance  of  the  old  Spaniards  towards  the  pro- 
vincials, first  diverted  this  current  of  independence  into  a  disloyal 
channel,  and  the  vindictive  measures  of  the  nominal  Spanish  govern- 
ment, which,  on  the  news  of  this  and  other  similar  demonstrations, 
hastened  to  declare  war  against  the  refractory  provinces,  precipitated 
hostilities.  The  whole  Sj)anish  nation,  indeed,  appears  to  have  been 
exceedingly  indignant,  and  although  unable  to  contend  successfully 
with  the  French  at  home,  managed  to  ship  oft"  considerable  bodies 
of  troops  for  the  purpose  of  .suppressing  by  force  the  spirit  of  inde- 
pendence abroad.  This  movement  increased  still  further  the  popular 
disaffection,  and  Venezuela  first  took  the  lead  in  asserting  open 
resistance.  At  a  congress  hehl  in  Caraccas  on  the  5th  of  July, 
1811,  the  delegates  from  the  various  provinces  of  that  state,  in  imi- 
tation of  that  memomble  convention  held,  just  thirty-five  years 
before,  in  British  North  America — published  a  declaration  of  inde- 
pendence, pledging,  like  their  illustrious  prototypes,  their  lives,  their 
fortunes,  and  their  honors  to  ma'ntair  it.  This  noble  example  was 
speedily  followed  by  New  Granada  and  Mexico,  and,  at  a  later  date, 
by  the  province  of  Ruenoa  Ayres. 

Meanwhile,  the  Corks^  or  temporary  Spanish  gOA'ernment  (January, 
1811)  had  obstinately  rejected  all  proposals  for  an  accommodation; 
and  though  England,  in  April  of  the  sainc  y^i^r,  had  offi^red  her  media- 
tion, proposing  (wilh  intorrstod  oommcn  '  il  policy)  a  schedule  of 
te.ins  for  an  adjustment  of  tic  diificultv,  her  interference  wi\a  finally 
rejected.  Curi .  isly  ei  u^'h,  Joseph  Bonaj-arte,  the  nominal  king  of 
Sj)ain,  to  who.se  elev;*'  on  the  colo  lists  had  shown  hwC.  determined 
antipathy,  now,  by  his  agents,  used  every  exertion  to  i..vor  the  spirit 


''hi 


'il, 


m 


;.  *-J-i-  ■  t*  * 


818 


THE  n^OPLL'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


of  inptirrcotiun  in  the  Spanish-American  provinces.  The  "-ovcrn- 
nient  of  the  United  States,  to  which  an  envoy  had  been  dispatchcil 
hesitated  to  commit  itself  by  openly  countenancing  the  cause  of  tlio 
lilwrals,  though  the  sentiments  of  the  people  were  ardently  iu  their 
favor;  and  the  British  ministers,  their  overtures  repulsed,  annoum-ocl 
that  they  should  observe  neutrality,  but  with  a  reservation  in  favour 
of  the  Sffanish  crown,  as  represented  by  Ferdinand  VII. 

The  original  junta  of  Caraccas,  of  1810,  after  deposing  the  author- 
ities, and  di.<»patching  several  of  them  to  the  United  States,  had  made 
many  useful  regulations,  of  a  liberal  nature,  but  had  experienced 
some  difTiculties,  arising  from  the  unsettled  state  of  the  country.  A 
hostile  collision  with  the  royalist  party  in  Maracaibo,  resulted  in 
considerable  fighting,  without  any  decisive  result,  and  dangerous 
conspiracies,  fomented  by  the  agents  of  the  Spanish  government 
rendered  that  of  tht  junta  insecure  in  the  extreme.  But  the  deelu- 
ration  of  independence,  and  the  regular  appointment  of  a  pojiiilar 
governtnent,  tis  already  mentioned,  infused  fresh  energy  into  the 
ccniiK-ils  of  the  leaders  of  the  revolution.  An  alarming  scheme  for 
tlieir  overthrow  and  slaughter  was  detected,  and  ten  of  the  coiispim 
tors,  after  trial,  were  executed,  and  their  heads,  after  the  barbarous 
custom  of  the  people,  placed  on  poles  at  the  entrance  of  the  city. 

At  the  same  time,  Valencia,  in  the  interior,  had  been  secured  hv 
the  royalists,  and  General  Toro,  who  was  dispatched  to  regain  it, 
iuid  experienced  much  loss  in  taking  posse.s.sion  of  an  outpost. 
(Jeneral  Miranda,  already  famed  for  his  repeated  attempts  to  exeiti; 
insurrection  against  the  Spanish  rule  in  Venezuela,  who  was  next 
dispatched  thither,  took  the  town  by  storm,  and  entered  with  liis 
forces.  But  the  Spanish  garri.son,  fighting  with  courage  in  their 
barracks,  finally  repulsed  tlie  patriots  with  nuich  loss;  and  the  rov- 
alists  »n  tiie  town,  from  the  towers  of  churches  and  convents,  and 
from  the  roofs  and  terraces  of  houses,  discharged  such  destructive 
volleys  of  musketry,  that  he  was  comjxjlled  to  evacuate  the  place, 
and  retire  to  a  fortified  position  at  some  distance.  Being  rtMnforced 
in  the  following  month,  he  again  assaulted  the  town  with  four  thou- 
sand troops,  gained  posession  of  it^  and  disjiersed  the  enemy. 

After  the  decluratiou  of  indepcn  ience,  public  attention  was  deeply 
engroR.'»ed  by  the  formation  of  a  constitution;  and  the  plan  of  a 
federative  republic,  similar  to  that  of  the  United  St^ites,  w:us  warmly 
urged  by  the  most  enlightened  friends  of  freedom.  An  iiistnuntnt 
resembling  in  form  llie  celebrated  constitution  of  that  republic,  nut 


SPANISH-AMERICAN    REVOLUTIONS. 


819 


quite  Inferior  in  principle,  was  prepared  by  the  iiongress,  ami  on  the 
l!3d  of  December,  presented  to  the  people  for  their  sanction.  It 
provided  for  a  senate  and  representatives,  a  judiciary  and  other 
branches  of  government,  with  an  executive  of  three  personu;  abol- 
ished torture,  the  slave-trade,  and  the  tribute  of  the  Indians;  and 
established  the  Catholic  religion  as  that  of  the  state.  The  town  of 
Valencia  was  ceded  to  the  federal  government  thus  organized,  and 
the  ib'st  congress  under  the  new  constitution  held  its  lirst  session 
there  in  March,  1812. 


TUE  AFFAIRS  OF  NEW  GRANADA.  —  EXPULSION  OF  THE  SPAN- 
lAUllS   FROM    SANTA   FE   AND  QUITO.  —  DISSENSIONS  OF   THE 

REPUBLICANS.  —  ADVANTAGES   OF   THE    ROYALISTS. THEIR 

CRUELTY.  —  THE   "AR.MY   OF   DEATH,"  —  FRESH   MASSACRE 

AT   QUITO. ALTERNATE   SUCCESSES   OF   THE   PATRIOTS 

AND    ROYALISTS. THE   EARTHQUAKE  AT  CARACCAS. 

—  ITS  EFFECT. — OVERTHROW    OF    THE   LIBERALS. 


Having  tluu  briefly  sketched  the  progress  of  events  in  Venezuela, 
we  come  to  those  of  New  Granada,  soon  destined  to  be  closely  con- 
niictod  with  its  si-ster-province.  In  July,  1810,  on  receipt  of  unwel- 
come tidings  from  Spain,  &  Junta  had  been  formed  at  Santa  Fe  de 
Bogota,  tiie  capital  of  that  state,  which  had  arrested  the  viceroy  and 
other  royal  officers,  and  had  dispatched  them  home  to  Spain.  Out 
of  the  twenty-two  provinces  of  which  this  colony  was  composed, 
nine  responded  to  the  call  for  erecting  a  provisional  government. 
OtluTS  espoused  the  royalist  faction,  and  a  civil  war  almost  imme- 
diately broke  out.  Tacon,  the  royalist  governor  of  Popayan,  was 
defeated  by  the  patriots;  and  the  people  of  Quito,  in  August,  soon 
after  the  ma.ssacre  already  mentioneil,  e.xasperated  by  the  arrival  of 
a  Sp;ini.sh  commissioner,  armed  only  with  clubs  and  knives,  attacked 
the  troops  with  such  fury  as  to  compel  them  to  leave  the  city. 
Toward  the  close  of  the  year,  the  jimta  of  Santa  Fe  entered  into  an 
alliance  for  mutual  protection  with  that  o''Caracca8. 

The  republican  party  of  Ne-'  Trranada,  di.sagreeing  as  to  the  form 
of  government  to  be  axlopt  is  eoon  involved  in  a  disgraeedil 


■kl 


W^*"J 


m 


,iA\ 


i 


320 


TUE  PEOl'LE'S   BOOK  OF   HISTORY. 


\"S 


iiiu'iiiul  feud.  Tho  forces  of  tho  congress,  in  atteni{)ting  to  take  by 
storm  Santa  Fe,  where  Narino,  the  presidiMit  of  Cuniliuuniunu 
was  quartered,  were  repulsed  with  terrible  loss,  and  tho  royalist*), 
hiking  advantage  of  these  di8.sen.su>"  infl"'«f.ed  great  atrocities  on 
the  defenceless  country,  InCuer'Jsu.  .ri>  laised  and  coinmandtd 
by  the  royalist  bishop,  and  oHi  •  red  i.  ^reat  part  by  priests,  carriud 
black  standards,  and  assume  I  tiie  terrible  name  of  "The  Army  of 
Deatii."  This  force  having  defeated  the  troops  of  Quito,  the  Peru- 
vian army,  which  had  lately  retreated  from  that  city  to  Guayaquil 
on  the  6th  of  Novemb-  •■,  lal'i,  ui.der  tho  ferocion^'  M  ■  ».>Sj  rjij.,,. 
tered  the  city,  and  murdered  one-fifth  of  thj  miiahitanta  vvho  i^. 
mained.  Tho  prisoners  taken  by  the  royalists  in  their  successes 
were,  with  unsparinj^  vengeance,  put  to  death. 

liC'called  to  then  senses  by  this  dangerous  movement,  and  the 
I'i  ightful  scenes  of  iLU-^sacre  by  which  it  was  accompanied,  the  con. 
tending  ropubliian.-;  ui  length  saw  the  necessity  of  laying  aside  their 
fiuds  and  providing  for  the  common  safety.  Their  forces,  eight 
thousand  in  number,  were  accordingly  united,  and  placed  under  the 
command  of  Narino,  who  marched  against  Samano,  the  successor  of 
Montes  in  command,  and  defeated  him  at  FA  Atto  del  Palace.  Tlic 
nnali.^t.-^,  reinforced,  again  offered  battle;  and  at  Caiivia,  in  Popayun, 
a  most  obstinate  battle,  contested  with  all  the  fury  that  disgraces  civil 
warfare,  resulted  in  their  renewed  distomfiture  and  retreat.  Narino 
gained,  though  with  severe  loss,  several  other  vict(jries  over  thu 
tyrannical  faction,  but  finally,  inarching  to  Pastas,  in  pursuit  of  the 
enemy,  being  deprived,  by  an  artful  straUigem,  of  the  support  of  his 
rear-division,  was  in  turn  defeated  and  made  jirisoner.  Cabal,  who 
succeeded  him  in  the  command,  was  compelled  lo  retreat  to  Popayaii, 
holly  pursued  by  the  victorious  royalists.  Mast  (  :  their  piisonens 
were  murdered  by  the  siicee.'^Hful  ;  iity.  y^june,  18 i  )  These  disas- 
ter.-<,  occurring  at  the  same  time  that  the  bigoted  Ferdiiuuid  was 
lestored  to  the  throne  of  Spain,  threv  «»n  aspect  of  deep  gloom  over 
the  cause  of  freedom  in  New  (irana.la. 

Meanwhile,  in  Vene/.uela,  the  r(!j)ublican  cause,  at  first  s».  prcsper- 
ous,  by  a  strange  accident  of  nature  had  l>een  plung  into  ruin  iiiin 
defeat.  On  Holy  Thursday,  the  2t)lh  of  M>  h,  1812,  when  ih. 
troops  and  j)eoplc,  throughout  the  .stale,  wen  wdi  g  into  chapel 
and  cathedral  to  partiv.ipate  in  one  of  the  most  i:npre«h  ve  ceremoiiit.- 
of  the  churi  *'  that  terrible  earth(piako,  one  of  the  most  fatal  rceonk  i 
in  historv,  lU  a  single  minute  laiU  waste  the  ill-fated  province,  a:.  1 


8  P  A  N'  1  S  II  -  A  M  K  K  1  C  A  iN    K  li  V  O  L  U  T  1 ' 


321 


crushed  the  cause  of  liberty,  for  a  time,  to  the  e.trth.  Curaccas,  Lu 
Ouira,  Mcrida,  and  many  other  towns,  were  laid  in  almost  coinplelo 
ruin.  Nearly  twenty  thousand  souls  perished — among  thorn  many 
BoliliiTS,  just  prepared  for  encounter  with  the  royalists.  Arms  and 
ammunition,  in  great  quantity,  were  likewise  destroyed;  and  the 
bigoted  clergy,  readily  catching  at  a  pretext  for  the  revival  of  deapcjt- 
ism,  a  ured  the  people  from  their  pulpits  that  this  terrible  calamity, 
occurring  on  an  occasion  so  solemn,  was  a  signal  manifestation  of 
the  wrath  of  Heaven  against  the  impiety  of  self  government.  Koruh 
and  his  troop  were  cited  as  an  exact  precedent,  and  the  ignorant 
people,  thoroughly  unmanned  by  misfortune  and  superstition,  lent 
a  ready  ear  to  the  miserable  assumption  of  their  spiritual  directors. 

Publi';  credit  rapidly  depreciated,  and  the  political  prospect  ap- 
peared so  alarming  that  the  congress,  almost  in  despair,  created 
Miranda  dictator  for  the  time,  with  full  power,  is  in  the  old  Roman 
cominon wealth,  in  similar  emergencies,  "to  t  that  the  Republic 
took  no  i.ijury."  They  then  adjourned  to  serve  in  the  army,  or  to 
traverse  the  provinces,  re\  iving,  by  eloquent  harangues,  the  fallen 
siiiritof  the  people.  With  two  thou.sand  men,  armed  with  muskets 
saved  from  the  ruins,  their  general  advanced  to  meet  the  enemy, 
who,  on  learning  these  disastrous  tidings,  had  marched,  under  Mon- 
tcverde,  to  ■  rd  Caraceas,  overcoming,  by  superior  force,  the  inelTi- 
cient  attem'  of  the  1'  al  forces  to  oppose  them.  Their  ranks 
werecontiiiUi.  y  reinforcid  from  those  of  the  superstitious  provincials, 
wh  )  thought  to  v-ert  tiie  divine  vengeance  by  enlisting  under  the 
banners  of  anciei..  oppression.  In  the  detilo  of  La  Cabrera,  a  diffi- 
cult pass  on  the  road  to  ( 'uraccas,  Miranda  had  posted  his  force,  to 
oppose  the  advance  of  ti  •nemy;  but  the  latter,  winning  their  way 
across  the  mountain  by  a  difficult  foot-path,  compelled  him  to  retreat 
to  Victoria,  only  fifty  miles  from  the  capital.  The  royalist  army 
attacked  the  town  with  much  spirit,  but  being  bravely  withstood, 
were  repulsed  with  loss.  Misfortunes,  however,  in  the  loss  of  Porto 
Gabello,  desertion  of  troops,  and  reinforcement  of  the  enemy,  thick- 
ened so  fast,  that  the  dictator  and  executive  despaired  even  of  holding 
out  in  the  ruins  of  Caraecas.  A  capitulation  with  Monteverde  was 
\ccordingly  agr 'cd  on,  in  the  following  terms: 

"Iflt.  That  the  Constitution  oifered  by  the  Cortes  to  the  Spanish  nation  should  be 
*'2d.  That  no  one  waa  to  aufllr  for  former  opinions.         [eaktbiished  in  Caraecas. 
"3d.  Tliat  nil  private  property  waa  to  be  held  aacrud. 
"4th.  Tli.it  cmij^riilion  was  to  be  permitted  to  thuae  who  wialied  to  leave  Caraccaa." 

Vol.  Ill,— 21 


A:  6' 


|i! 


t^ii 


.!y,i::livi 


•)•>. 


THE  PKOI'LE'S   BOOK   OF   IIISTdHV 


Jt 


■'if 


The  Veiiozuehin  capitiil  and  the  slcndor  roiimiiis  of  the  liberal  ariny 
thus  Hurroiulered,  the  Sj)aiiiah  rule  was  once  more  completely  hi  the 
ascoiidont  in  that  uiifortuiiuti!  Htate.  Ouoc  rCcHtabliahed  in  power 
the  royalist  government  shatnelossly  broke  through  every  artieh;  of 
the  capitulation.  Miranda  and  a  thousand  other  patriots  were  thrown 
into  (iungeons,  and  numbers  were  condemned  by  the  Spanish  Cortes 
lo  perpetual  imprisonment.  Monteverde,  who  now  had  the  conipleto 
authority  in  his  hands,  continued  to  j)ush  the  work  of  oppression. 
At  length,  the  whole  liberal  party  of  Venezuela  was  proscribed,  ond 
Caracca«  and  other  cities  were  converted  into  more  prisons.  Nearly 
the  whole  republican  population,  it  is  said,  was  under  confinement. 
The  ministry  of  Spain,  unsatisfied  with  these  severities,  complained 
"of  the  indulgence  which  had  been  shown  to  the  insurgents  of 
Caracca-s."  The  reaction  caused  by  these  acts  of  perfidy  and  cruelty, 
was  not  long  in  approaching.  In  Cumana,  the  young  Marino,  raising 
a  force  of  liberals,  renewed  the  war  by  seizing  the  town  of  Maturin; 
and  two  atttempts  by  the  Spaniards  to  rCgain  it,  the  last  under 
Monteverde  himself,  proved  fruitleas. 


CHAPTER  HI. 

SIMON  BOLIVAR.  —  HIS  GENEROUS  AND   PATRIOTIC   8PIRIT.— 
HIS   SUCCESSES   AOAi  NST   THE     ROYALISTS.  —  ASSISTED    BY 

NEW   ORANADA.  —  HE   REENTERS    CARACCA8. "WAR    TO 

THE     DEATH." — THE     SERVILE     INSURRECTION     AND 

WAR. — CRUEL    DEED   OP   BOLIVAR.  —  BATTLES  WITH 

THE   ROYALISTS. — RENEWED    PROSTRATION 

OP  THE  REPUBLICAN  CAUSE. 

The  name  most  famous  in  the  South  American  wars  of  independ- 
ence, is  that  of  Simon  Bolivar.  lie  was  a  native  of  Caracca.s,  of 
wealth  and  of  good  family,  and  during  his  travels  in  Europe,  while 
yet  a  youth,  had  enlarged  his  mind,  enjoyed  the  friendship  of 
eminent  men,  and  attracted  attention  by  his  talents  and  learning. 
From  familiarity  with  the  comparatively  free  in.stitutions  of  England 
mid  Switzerland,  he  had  imbibed  an  ardent  love  for  liberty  in  its 
noblest  signification — a  love  which,  on  his  return  to  Venezuela,  just 


'M 


r 


SPANISH-AMEKIOAN    REVOLUTIONS. 


828 


(it  the  comtnenccmcnt  of  the  revolution,  ho  displayed  hy  emfincipntin^ 
more  than  n  thousund  slaves,  which  he  had  inherited,  and  hy  em- 
bnrlvitig  his  princely  fortune  in  the  republican  cause,  lie  had  coin- 
maiided  the  important  po.st  of  Porto  Cabello,  which,  at  the  triumph 
of  tlic  royalists,  he  had  been  compelled  to  surrender;  but,  disap- 
proving of  the  capitulation,  had  betaken  himself  to  the  banks  of  the 
Magdalcna,  where,  with  a  small  force,  in  the  latter  part  of  1812,  he 
nmde  an  eflectivo  stand  against  the  dominant  party. 

On  application  to  the  re[)ublican  congress  of  New  Granada,  that 
body  supplied  him  with  a  levy  of  six  hundred  men,  reinforced  with 
wiiich,  he  crossed  the  Andes,  and  gained  successive  victories  over 
t!i'!  royalists.  The  latter,  by  the  savage  policy  of  executing  their 
prisonens,  at  last  provoked  reprisal;  and  Bolivar  was  compelled  to 
;iini<iunco  that  the  Hamo  unsparing  cruelty  would  be  practiced  in 
retaliation.  The  war  thenceforward  became,  literally,  what  it  was 
callt'd — la  guerra  a  muertc — "war  to  the  death."  The  people,  their 
superstitious  fears  supplanted  by  irritation  at  the  continued  atroci- 
ties of  the  roynl  party,  now  rallied  in  great  numbers  around  the 
standard  of  Bolivar — "the  Liberator,"  as  he  was  justly  entitled. 

Having  gained  many  victories,  he  advanced  upon  Caraccas,  while 
Monteverde  was  compelled  to  retreat  to  Porto  Cabello.  The  royal 
governor,  Fierro,  having  signed  a  capitulation,  collected  all  the 
property  he  could,  and  sailed  for  Spain,  leaving  at  the  mercy  of  the 
victor  fifteen  hundred  Spaniards,  who  were  unable  to  escape.  On 
the  13th  of  August,  1813,  Bolivar,  to  the  intense  joy  of  the  long- 
oppressed  liberals,  entered  Caracca.s.  The  scene  was  affecting  in  the 
extreme,  and  the  dungeons  being  thrown  open,  the  surviving  cap- 
tives were  restored  to  liberty.  Through  the  exertions  of  Marino  in 
the  eastern  provinces,  the  royal  yoke  had  also  been  thrown  off  there, 
and  nearly  all  Venezuela  was  again  republican,  except  Porto  Cabello, 
where  Monteverde  still  held  out,  and  refused  all  terms  of  treaty. 
]{('inforced  by  twelve  hundred  troops  from  Spain,  he  marched  forth 
and  attacked  the  patriot  forces  at  Aguacaiente,  but  was  defeated  with 
terrible  loss,  nearly  his  whole  force  being  killed  or  made  prisoners. 
Being  wounded,  he  was  succeeded  in  the  command  by  Saloman,  and 
then  by  Istueta,  who  still  held  command  of  Porto  Cabello,  and 
inflicted  great  cruelties  on  the  numerous  prisoners  confined  in  that 
fortress.  By  night  they  were  kept  in  suffocating  dungeons,  where 
lif'ty  of  them,  at  one  time,  perished  for  want  of  air,  and  in  the  day 
«-cre  exposed  before  the  batteries  to  deter  the  patriots  from  firing. 


,f!i . 


Hi 


.!  '1 


a24 


THK   I'EOl'LE'S    BOOK    OF   ll'oTOKV 


The  latter  retorted  with  similar  cruelties,  and  the  war  of  extermina- 
tiou  raged  more  fiercely  than  ever.  Bolivar  gained  possession  of  the 
town,  but  was  unable  to  dislodge  the  garrison,  on  account  of  the 
strength  of  the  fortress,  and  the  desperation  of  its  defenders.  The 
royalists  of  the  province  of  Coro,  the  staunchest  stronghold  of  des- 
potism, reinforced  by  Spanish  troops  from  Porto  Rico,  marched  iiuo 
the  territory  of  Caraccas,  but,  after  gaining  some  advantages,  were 
routed,  in  three  actions,  by  the  Liberator.  To  avoid  the  evils  of  a 
coutiijti'id  military  rule,  Bolivar  now  summoned  all  the  i^rincipal 
persons  of  the  state,  with  the  intention  to  resign  his  authority  into 
their  hands;  but  it  was  judged  expedient,  in  view  of  the  critical 
position  of  affairs,  that  he  should  hold  the  authority  of  dictator  for 
some  t^ne  longer.     (January,  1814.) 

The  royal  party,  burning  with  revenge  at  their  successive  discom- 
fitures, now  took  the  mad  and  desperate  resolution  of  exciting  the 
slaves,  seventy  thousand  in  number,  to  insurrection.  This  nefarious 
project,  for  a  time,  met  with  complete  success.  The  blacks,  attracted 
by  the  bope  of  freedom  and  of  plunder,  enlisted  with  great  zeal 
under  the  incendiary  agents.  Puy,  a  Spaniard,  and  Palomo,  a 
mulatto  and  outlawed  a.ssassin,  at  the  head  of  such  a  force,  carried 
desolation  through  Barinas,  Guiana,  and  other  towns;  while  Boves 
and  Rosette,  witli  an  army  composed  of  similar  materials,  laid  waste 
a  vast  tract  of  country  in  another  dir  ::tion,  killing  every  inhabitant 
who  refused  to  join  them.  Tlieir  force,  amounting  to  eight  tiiousand 
consisted  almost  entirely  of  slaves,  and  with  such  suddenness  and 
fury  was  the  ri.sing  ellected,  that  a  portion  of  the  servile  army  ad- 
vanced witiiin  ten  leagues  of  the  capital. 

The  Spaiii.sh  prisoners  at  thai  place  and  at  La  Guira,  encouraged 
by  these  circumstances,  concerted  a  revolt;  and  Rjlivar,  excited  bv 
tlie  atrocities  of  the  royalists,  and  dreading  the  result  of  the  insur- 
rectionary movement,  ciiu.sed  them,  eight  hundred  in  number,  to  he 
executed  without  mercy.  This  cruel  and  impolitic  deed  was  relented 
by  an  act  of  equal  feriK;ity  at  Porto  Cabello,  all  the  republican  pris- 
oners there,  .several  hundred,  suHeriiig  a  similar  fate.  Tliis  massa- 
cre committed,  Bolivar  march"d  against  the  enemy,  and  gained  some 
advantages,  thuugii  with  severe  loss.  Marino  marched  from  Cuinana 
to  his  assistance,  and  the  patriot  ri)r(k}s,  thus  strengthened,  gained 
two  important  victories.  Defeated  in  turn,  they  retreated  to  Valencia, 
where,  on  the  2Sth  of  May,  1814,  Cigigal,  the  new  royalist  captain- 
general  of  Venezuela,  with  forces  largely  strengthened  by  concen- 


SPANISH-AMERICAN  REVOLUTIONS. 


82D 


tration,  engaged  them.  The  battle  was  contested  with  uncommon 
obstinacy  and  fury,  but  the  royalists  were  finally  defeated,  with  a  loss 
of  five  hundred  men,  and  were  pursued  by  the  victor  to  Coro  and 
Log  Llanos. 

The  patriot  general,  by  an  indiscreet  division  of  his  force,  was,  in 
turn,  defeated  by  a  large  body  of  cavalry,  under  Boves,  and  Marino 
experienced  a  similar  disaster.  With  that  striking  suddenness  pecu- 
liar to  this  desultory  civil  warfare,  the  royal  faction  again  started 
up  in  the  ascendant.  The  patriot  generals  retreated  to  Curaana,  and 
nearly  the  whole  population  of  Caraccaa,  dreading  the*  vengf  ance  of 
the  enemy,  followed  them.  That  city,  with  La  Guira  and  Valencia, 
were  taken,  the  latter  surrendering  only  in  consideration  of  a  solemn 
oath,  taken  by  the  Spanish  general  in  assurance  of  good  faith,  and 
fortified  by  the  celebration  of  mass.  But  no  sooner  had  he  gained  pos- 
session of  the  town,  than  he  caused  the  officers  and  nearly  all  the 
soldiers  of  the  garrison  to  be  shot.  The  remains  of  the  patriot  army, 
after  twice  repulsing  the  victorious  enemy  at  Maturin,  were  overcome 
by  superior  numbers,  and  a  few  retreated  to  the  island  of  Margarita, 
where  they  still  held  out.  Bolivar,  despairing  for  the  present  of 
saving  his  country,  repaired  to  New  Granada,  and  offered  his  services, 
which  were  gladly  accepted,  to  the  congress  of  that  state. 


i'*1 


CHAPTEH   I?. 


RESTORATION   OF   PERRINAND. — EXTINCTION   OP   LOYALTY   IN 

THE  COLONIES.  —  TYRANNICAL   POLICY   OF   THE   KINO. 

SPIRKTED  CONDUCT  OF  THE  CONGRESS  OF  NEW  GRAN- 
ADA.—  DISSENSIONS  OF  THE  REPUBLICANS. — 
INJUDICIOUS  CONDUCT  OF   BOLIVAR. 


TuE  ove'throw  of  Napoleon,  in  1814,  and  the  restoration  of  the 
bigoted,  t.yr.iiiiiical  Ferdinand  to  the  throne  of  Spain,  were  events 
which  might  well  fill  the  minds  of  the  republicans  with  gloomy  fore- 
bodings. Singular  to«8tate,  their  precautions  against  the  threatened 
ascendency  of  France  had  first  precii)itated  the  revolution;  and  the 
iiewd  of  these  events,  ut  that  time,  would  have  excited  the  greatest 
joy  in  the  provinces.     But  a  civil  war  of  four  years,  embittered  by 


'1 . 


520 


THE  rEOPLE'S  BOOK   OF  IIISTOKY. 


continual  outrasje  and  cruelty,  especially  by  the  Spanish  party,  lia^l 
now  quite  extinguished  the  flame  of  loyalty  in  the  breasts  of  the 
South  American  patriots.  It  was,  therefore,  with  the  greatest  dis- 
may that  the  congress  of  New  Granada,  at  the  same  time,  heard  of 
the  restoration  of  Ferdinand,  the  renewed  subjection  of  Venezuela 
and  the  entire  defeat  of  their  own  army,  under  Narino. 

The  intelligence  from  Europe,  (says  Mr.  Niles,*)  "entirely 
changed  the  general  aspect  of  things,  and  in  some  measure  the  char- 
acter of  the  revolution.  The  resistance  in  America  commenced 
against  the  authority  of  the  regency  of  Spain,  and  in  most  of  the 
provinces  the  authority  of  Ferdinand  was  expressly  acknowledged. 
Ferdinand  was  now  on  the  throne,  and  if  resistance  was  continued 
it  must  be  against  the  power  of  the  legitimate  sovereign  of  Spain. 
The  restoration  of  the  king,  therefore,  changed  the  relations  between 
the  colonies  and  the  parent-country,  as  well  as  placed  the  latter  in  a 
condition  to  direct  all  its  strength  against  the  rebellious  Americans 
being  relieved  from  the  war  at  home,  and  having  no  longer  any 
employment  for  her  armies  in  the  peninsula.  At  an  earlier  period 
of  the  contest,  the  restoration  of  Ferdinand  would  have  greatly 
damped,  if  not  effectually  checked,  the  spirit  of  the  revolution ;  but 
after  the  struggle  had  continued  nearly  five  years,  and  the  minds  of 
the  Americans  become  exasperated  by  the  cruelties  and  massacres 
of  the  Spaiii.sh  colonial  rulers,  it  was  calculated  to  have  but  compar- 
atively little  influence.  Had  Ferdinand,  however,  pursued  a  con- 
ciliatory line  of  conduct  towards  America;  had  he  condemned  the 
rashness  of  the  colonial  chiefs,  who  had  driven  the  people  into 
resistance;  reformed  the  abuses  and  removed  the  oppression  of 
which  the  colonics  ju.«tly  comjOained,  probably  he  might  have  so  fur 
revived  the  sentiments  of  loyalty  as  to  have  checked,  if  not  extin- 
guished, the  flame  of  the  revolution.  But  instead  of  this  course,  the 
first  olllcial  intelligence  the  Americans  had  of  his  being  reinstated 
on  the  throne,  was  a  decree,  treating  them  as  rebels,  and  command- 
ing them  to  lay  down  their  arms."  Another  decree  (June,  1814,) 
directed  the  equipment  of  a  formidable  armament,  for  the  8Uj)pr&s- 
sion  of  the  insurrection. 

Amid  all  these  disheartening  circumstances,  the  congress  of  New 
Granada,  true  to  their  trust,  presented  a  bold  front  to  their  men- 
acing destiny.  In  a  jiroclamatioii,  detailing  with  the  most  naked 
disli(ietnes>i,  the  lu.sses  and  misfortunes  of  the  republican  cau.sc  iu 

*  Ilintury  of  Suuth  Anu-rica. 


SPANISH-AMERICAK    REVOLUTIOXS.  ;;_7 

the  two  states,  and  presenting  the  disastrous  prospect  of  subjection 
in  its  fullest  light,  they  nobly  conclude,  "  Useless  shall  be  the  declara- 
tion of  our  independence,  if  we  have  not  resolution  to  support  it. 
We  possess  within  ourselves  the  means  of  attaining  this  great  object, 
and  no  power  whatever  will  be  strong  enough  to  conquer  us,  if  we 
avail  ourselves  of  our  own  strength ;  our  exertions  must  unquestion- 
ably be  great,  and  our  sacrifices  for  the  common  cause  unbounded. 
But  such  efforts  are  worthy  of  men  raised  to  the  dignity  of  a  free 
people,  and  are  absolutely  necessary,  since  we  have  nothing  to  hope 
and  much  to  fear  from  the  European  nations.  Notwithstanding  the 
cessions  at  Bayonne,  and  the  torrents  of  blood  which  the  French 
have  shed  by  the  war  in  the  Peninsula,  Ferdinand  has  been  restored 
to  Spain ;  and  the  country,  now  freed  from  the  French,  will  have 
both  the  power  and  the  will  to  send  a  formidable  army  again  to 
subdue  us. 

"Ye  people  of  New  Granada!  contemplate  your  fate,  and  that 
of  your  posterity;  you  may  easily  judge  of  it;  a^d  let  your  resolu- 
tion be  formed  accordingly  and  nobly.  Again,  we  repeat,  your 
destiny  depends  upon  your  own  exertions."    (September  1st,  1814.) 

Stringent  measures,  dictated  by  necessity,  were  taken  for  the 
common  safety.  The  chiefs  of  the  province  of  Cundinamarca  having 
refused  to  join  the  confederacy,  Bolivar,  in  Deo  aber,  1814,  was 
disp.a'.(',hed  to  its  capital,  Santa  Fe  de  Bogota,  to  Ibrce  a  compliance. 
He  t  »ok  the  suburbs  by  storm,  and  the  president,  Alvarez,  making 
a  virtue  of  necessity,  capitulated,  and  agreed  to  unite  in  the  con- 
federacy. The  federal  government,  thus  strengthened,  appointed  a 
triple  executive,  and  proceeded  to  pass  many  liberal  and  salatary 
acts.  Monopolies  and  tribute  of  the  Indians  were  abolished,  for- 
eigners were  invited  to  the  country,  and  the  liberty  of  the  press  w;is 
assui'cd.  Among  the  clergy,  many  of  the  more  intelligent  now 
embraced  the  popular  cause;  an.^  the  friars  of  St.  Dominic,  hi  par- 
ticular, showed  their  patriotism  by  j Tesenting  to  the  national  treasury 
the  wealth  wliich  they  had  long  hoaru«id  in  their  sanctuary. 

Cabal  and  Urdoneta,  with  reinforeenit'its,  were  employed  in  dif- 
ferent directions,  against  the  enemy;  and  ilolivar,  with  tlic  'ipi)oint- 
ment  of  caj)tuin-gcneral  of  New  Granada  and  Venezuela,  in  command 
of  three  thousand  men,  niised  by  great  exertioiij^,  marched  against 
the  royalists  of  Santa  Martha.  But  that  commander,  with  singular 
infatuation,  being  lliwarted  in  his  plans  by  Castilh*,  tlie  republican 
coiamauder  of  Carthugena,  his  personal  enemy,  delayed  his  inarch 


5  ■'»;! 


m 


323 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


tw  besiege  that  city  and  bring  the  refractory  officer  to  terms.  This 
civil  contest,  entirely  breaking  up  the  original  enterprise,  and  per- 
mitting the  royalists  to  gain  great  advantages,  was  carried  on  till 
news  arrived  that  the  great  Spanish  expedition,  prepared  at  Cadiz 
to  crush  the  republican  cause,  had  arrived  off  Venezuela.  Recalled 
to  his  judgment  by  this  alarming  intelligence,  Bolivar  ceased  the 
unnatural  contest,  and,  leaving  the  remains  of  his  army  for  the 
defence  of  the  city  he  had  besieged,  betook  himself  to  Jamaica  to  fit 
out  an  expedition  for  its  relief. 


ARRIVAL   OF   THE   SPANISH    ARMT,    UNDER    MORILLO. — TERRIBLE 

BLOCKADE   OP   CARTHAOKXA. RENEWED   EXERTIONS  OP  THE 

PATRIOTS. ALTERNATE    SUCCESSES. MORILLO   CONQUERS 

NEW    GRANADA. — SEVERITIES    EXERCISED    ON    THE   VAN- 

QUISHED.  —  MARCHES   INTO    VENEZUELA. — SUCCESSPUL 

DEFENCE    OP    MARGARITA    BY    THE    PATRIOTS. 

The  armament  of  Span,  the  most  formidable  which  that  nation 
had  ever  di.spatohcd  to  the  shores  of  the  New  World,  consisted  of 
ten  thousand  of  her  best  troops,  conveyed  in  fifty  transports.  The 
feeble  resources  of  the  country,  exhausted  by  war  with  the  French 
had  been  almost  entirely  expended  in  preparing  it.  Morillo,  the 
commander,  first  t(M)k  the  island  of  Margaritn,  'vhere  many  of  the 
patriots  of  Venezuela,  under  Bermudas,  had  taken  refuge;  and 
thence  proceeded  to  Caraeoas,  where,  and  at  other  cities  on  the 
coast,  he  landed  two  thousand  men.  In  August,  1815,  he  laiu  siege 
to  Cartliagena.  That  city,  strongly  fortified,  and  bravely  defended, 
stood  »  siege  of  four  months,  including  two  bombardments;  but 
being  strictly  invested,  both  by  land  and  water,  the  garri.sun  suf 
fered  terribly  from  famine.  On  the  5th  of  December,  the  deaths 
amounting  to  a  hundred  a  day,  they  evacuated  the  city,  two  thou- 
sand in  number,  in  eleven  ships,  making  good  their  retreat,  and 
repulsing  the  Spanish  armament,  by  which  they  were  attacked. 
They  mostly  proceeded  to  Aux  Caycs.  "The  horrible  appearance 
of  thi?  city,"  says  Montalvo,  the  captain-general,  "is  scarcely  to  bo 


j:  m 


SPANISH-AMERICAN    EE VOLUTIONS. 


329 


'•"lit 


described;  the  streets,  and  even  the  houses,  were  heaped  up  with 
dead  bodies,  or  with  those  who  were  expiring;  the  atmosphere  was 
in  a  pestilential  state,  which  nearly  stopped  respiration;  groans  and 
lamentations  assailed  our  ears."  Castillo  and  other  distinguished 
patriots  were  executed. 

Before  Bolivar  could  mature  his  scheme  for  the  relief  of  Cartha- 
gena,  that  city  had  fallen ;  and  he  once  more  turned  his  attention 
t()  Venezuela.  Many  guerilla  parties,  as  in  the  peninsula  war,  were 
now  formed,  and  inflicted  much  annoyance  on  the  enemy.  In  com- 
pany with  a  wealthy  and  patriotic  Curagoan,  named  Brion,  he  fitted 
out  an  expedition  of  a  thousand  troops  from  Aux  Cayes,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  Margarita,  where  the  standard  of  revolt  had  been  success- 
fully raised.  On  the  way  he  took  two  Spanish  men-of-war,  and 
early  in  May,  1816,  landing  on  the  island,  gained  complete  possession 
of  it.  He  next  took  Carupano,  on  the  main-land,  and  proceeding  to 
other  ports,  ib-(ued  a  proclamation,  declaring  that  "justice  and  policy 
demand  the  em.\acipatijn  of  the  slaves,  and  henceforth  there  shall 
be  but  one  class  of  people  in  Venezuela — all  shall  be  citizens."  At 
these  unexpected  successes  of  the  patriots,  the  rage  of  the  royalists 
was  unbounded,  and  they  inflicted  the  greatest  cruelties  on  all 
within  their  power. 

Bolivar  now  unfortunately  divided  his  little  army,  placing  a  part 
under  the  command  of  McGregor,  a  Scotchman,  and  being  attacked 
|)j  the  Spanish  troops,  under  Morales,  was  defeated,  with  a  loss  of 
two  hundred  men,  and  of  nearly  all  his  best  officers.  The  victor 
then  pursued  McGregor,  with  such  confidence  of  success,  that  he 
dispatched  to  Caraccas,  in  advance,  official  accounts  of  the  defea' 
and  death  of  that  officer,  and  the  capture  of  his  entire  force;  never- 
theless, coining  uj)  with  him  at  last,  was  himself  completely  beaten 
in  the  two  actions  of  Alacran  and  Juncal,  and  the  republican  officer 
took  iipascssion  of  Barcelona.  Bolivar,  after  his  defeat,  proceeded 
to  Murguxita,  where  he  summoned*  cougnss,  and  then  repairing  to 
Barcelona,  formed  a  provisional  government,  and  repulsed  the  attacks 
of  Morales  and  Real  with  great  loss.  Most  of  Guiana  had  also  now 
been  gained  by  the  patriots,  under  Piar, 

Morillo,  after  taking  Carthagena,  had  invaded  New  Grani.da,  with 
an  overwlielniiiig  force,  in  three  several  directions.  The  congress 
of  that  state  had  bravely  opposed  what  resistance  they  coulJ,  either 
riitoring  the  army  or  traversing  the  provinces  to  excite  the  people, 
A  iiiiiiibir  of  ba'tles  and  skirmishes  were  fought,  in  mofl  of  which 


mul 


m 


.m    t-;; 


320 


THE   TEOl'LE'S   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


the  royalists  had  the  advantage;  and  finally,  in  the  sanguinary  con- 
flict of  Cachira,  the  flower  of  the  Granadan  army  perished,  and  tho 
survivors  fled  to  Loa  Llanos.  In  June,  1816,  Morillo  entered  Santa 
Fe  de  Bogota,  and,  with  the  customary  policy  of  the  colonial  agents 
at  once  commenced  the  work  of  proscription  and  execution.  More 
than  six  hundred  persons,  prominent  in  the  affairs  of  the  govern- 
ment or  the  army,  were  shot,  hanged,  or  exil  <d,  and  the  prisons 
were  filled  with  others,  awaiting  their  fate.  Yet,  in  his  dispatches 
that  commander  vaunts  of  having  "displayed  that  clemency,  so 
much  recommended  by  the  king,  which  was  unbounded." 

Many  of  the  victims  were  men  of  peace,  eminent  for  their  science 
and  leartiiiig,  but  had  incurred  the  hatred  of  the  Spanish  authorities 
by  their  eloquent  denunciations  of  tyranny.  "  In  Santa  Fe,"  writes 
the  vicloi,  "there  are  but  few  blacks  and  mulattoes.  In  Venezuelu 
a  consi'lin-able  part  of  the  white  population  has  perished  in  the  revo- 
lut  I .  The  inhabitants  of  Santa  Fe  are  timid,  those  of  Venezuela 
be  i'  ud  sanguinary.  In  Santa  Fe  much  has  been  published  during 
the  revoli't?  ^n,  and  the  learned  have  ruled  all  with  their  pens;  hut 
in  Caracc:iy  they  displayed  earlier  the  naked  sword.  •  *  *  '^\i 
is  effected  by  the  rebels  from  Venezuela.  They  are  like  ferocious 
beasts  when  they  fight  in  their  own  country ;  and  it  they  get  able 
commanders,  it  will  require  many  years  to  subdue  them,  and  even 
then  it  will  be  done  at  the  expense  of  much  blood  and  considerable 
sums  of  money.!' 

In  November,  1816,  to  suppress  the  Venezuelans,  Morillo,  with 
two  thousand  men,  took  up  his  march  for  Caraccas.  He  was  attacked 
on  the  way  by  the  patriots,  under  Paez,  with  considerable  success; 
but  in  the  absence  of  Bolivar,  the  town  of  Barcelona,  the  only  post 
of  importance  held  by  the  republicans,  on  the  7th  of  April,  1817, 
was  taken  by  the  royalists.  In  the  following  month,  they  were 
reinforced  by  tho  arrival  of  sixteen  hundred  men  from  Spain.  This 
loss  was  in  some  degree  compensated  by  the  fall  of  Angostura,  the 
capital  of  Guiana,  which  surrendered  to  the  united  arms  of  Bolivar 
and  Piar,  and  the  seizure  of  the  whole  province  by  the  patriot  forces. 
This  acquisition  was  of  the  highest  importance  to  the  cause  of  tho 
republicans,  as  it  enabled  them  to  cut  off  the  supplies  of  the  enemy, 
to  hold  free  communication  with  their  stronghold  of  ^^argarita,  and 
to  rccfive  supplies  from  the  West  Indies.  To  subdu'^  that  n-fraotory 
island,  the  scene  of  their  earliest  repulses,  tiie  Spaniards,  in  .Tune, 
di.s])atched  an  expedition  of  seven   vts.sels;   and  in  the  following 


month  (Jul 
hundred  tn 
He  took  hy 
patar,  the  s 
ate  all  who 
twenty  thoi 
to  the  last, 
cnnpaign, 
atrocious  h\ 
having  lost 
the  attempt 
and  determ 
as  this  litth 
ance  to  tyrj 
In  Octob 
of  General 
the  republi( 
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the  Venezu 
reelected  Bi 
patriots  hac 
Barinas  anc 
them;  but '. 
a  vigorous  < 
them  from 
Guiana.  T 
success,  we] 
trained  to  i 
Spaniards,  > 
ished.  Th( 
dismay  and 


SPANISH-AMERICAN  REVOLUTIONS. 


831 


month  (July  14th,  1817)  Morillo  in  person,  with  three  thousand  five 
liundreil  troops  and  additional  naval  forces,  proceeded  there  in  person. 
He  took  by  storm,  after  a  desperate  resistance,  the  fortress  of  Pam- 
patar,  the  strongest  on  the  island,  and  resolved  utterly  to  extermin- 
ate all  who  resisted.  The  entire  population  of  the  island  was  about 
twenty  thousand,  and  all  who  could  bear  arms  determined  on  fighting 
to  the  last.  With  such  gallantry  and  obstinacy  did  they  contest  the 
campaign,  that,  after  fighting  five  battles,  and  inflicting  the  most 
atrocious  butcheries  on  all  who  fell  into  his  hands,  the  savage  Morillo, 
having  lost  a  thousand* of  his  troops,  was  compelled  to  relinquish 
the  attempt  at  subjecting  them.  A  more  signal  instance  of  patriotism 
and  determination  has  seldom  been  witnessed  on  a  theatre  so  small 
as  this  little  island,  the  earliest  of  the  provinces  in  successful  resist- 
ance to  tyranny. 

In  October,  1817,  a  lamentable  incident  occurred  in  the  treason 
of  General  Piar,  who  had  fought  with  bravery  and  good  success  for 
the  republican  cause,  and  who  suffered  execution  as  the  punishment 
of  his  ambitious  schemes.  On  the  11th  of  the  following  month, 
the  Venezuelan  congress  once  more  assembled  at  Angostura,  and 
reelected  Bolivar  as  president  of  the  republic.  The  prospects  of  the 
patriots  had  brightened  exceedingly — Guiana,  Casinare,  Pamplona, 
Barinas  and  portions  of  other  provinces  having  been  recovered  by 
them ;  but  Bolivar,  who,  in  conjunction  with  the  brave  Paez,  made 
a  vigorous  campaign  against  the  enemy,  was  unable,  as  yet,  to  expel 
them  from  Venezuela,  and,  after  considerable  fighting,  returned  to 
Guiana.  These  operations,  though  not  attended  with  immediate 
success,  were  of  great  advantage  to  the  republicans,  who  were  thus 
trained  to  the  art  of  war,  and  of  equally  great  detriment  to  the 
Spaniards,  whose  number,  already  limited,  was  thus  seriously  dimin- 
ished. The  name  of  Morillo  could  still  inspire  hatred,  but  no  longer 
dismay  and  despair. 


832 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


CiiAPTiljii    vx. 


ATTITUDE  OP  POREION    NATIONS,  —  BRITISH   VOLUNTEERS. 

CAMPAIGN    OF   BOLIVAR    IN     NEW    GRANADA. BRILLIANT 

SUCCESSES. DEFEAT   AND    PLIGHT   OF   THE    ROYALISTS. 

— GRATITUDE  OP  THE  PEOPLE.  —  UNION  OF  THE  STATES 

OP  NEW  GRANADA  AND  VENEZUELA  UNDER  THE  TITLE 

OP  COLOMBIA.  —  REVERSES  AND  SUCCESSES 

OF  THE  PATRIOTS. 


1*1'  ^ 


During  this  terrible  internecine  warfare,  which  had  now  lasted 
for  nearly  nine  years,  the  patriots  of  Venezuela  and  New  Granada 
had  sustained  themselves,  unaided,  again.st  the  powerful  royalist  fac- 
tions and  the  forces  dispatched  from  Spain  to  effect  their  resubjuga- 
tion.  Unsuccessful  application  for  assistance  had  been  made  to  the 
British  governmsnt,  and  several  missions,  with  no  better  fortune 
had  been  dispatched  to  the  United  States  of  America — that  country 
still  feeble  and  in  its  infancy,  not  daring,  as  yet,  to  hazard  its  newly- 
acquired  liberties  by  any  unnecessary  step,  involving  a  war  with  the 
European  powers.  Overtures  for  the  same  pur])08e  were  finally 
made  to  Napoleon  him.self,  the  very  enemy  to  resist  whom  the  ini- 
tiatory steps  of  revolution  had  been  taken;  bnt  when  arrangoments 
were  actually  making  for  the  effective  aid  of  the  republicans,  the 
battle  of  Leipsic,  crippling  the  power  of  the  emperor  at  home,  loft  him 
without  the  nreans  of  aiding  the  cause  of  freedom  in  South  America. 

Some  tardy  movements  in  favour  of  acknowledging  the  indepei:d- 
ence  of  the  suffering  j)rovinces  at  length  took  place  in  the  United 
States,  and  some  volunteers,  with  supplies  of  munitions,  were  afforded 
by  private  sympathy.  To  the  honour  of  the  Briti.«h  nation,  conoii- 
prable  numbers  of  its  people  embarked  in  the  same  goTiorous  cause. 
In  1818  and  1819,  several  hundred  voiuntcor3,  with  large  supplies 
of  arms  and  munitions,  and  commands  by  experienced  officers, 
arrived  at  Margarita,  and  wore  soon  tra.sj,  ^rted  to  the  main-land. 

Bolivar  now  resolved  on  carrying  ine  war  into  New  Grr.na'la. 
where  the  royalists,  for  some  time,  had  been  completely  in  the 
ascendant.  The  particulars  of  this  remarkable  campaiirn,  one  of  the 
most  Vn'illiant,  considering  the  small  forces  engaged,  on  reconl,  nt'ist 
be   briefly  detailed.     Taking  with   him  a  force  of  picked  trt»ps, 


or  AAlSU-AMElilOAN   BEVOLUTIONB. 


asa 


including  the  British  auxiliaries,  the  president,  in  the  month  of 
April,  commenced  a  march  obstructed  by  extraordinary  difficulties. 
"The' rainy  season,"  he  reports,  "hud  commenced,  ant^  .ae  plains 
nreseuted  only  vast  sheets  of  inundation ;  the  frozen  suntinits  of  the 
Andes  lay  in  our  route;  the  sudden  inutr^'  .is  of  adverse  climates 
Avere  to  be  encountered;  a  well-disciplinen  irmy,  three  times  our 
own  number,  were  in  front  of  us,  and  occupying  all  the  miliUiry 
positions  of  those  regions."  At  Casanare,  where  he  was  joined  by 
Santander,  he  issued  an  eloquent  proclamation  to  the  people  of  New- 
Granada.  In  a  terrible  march,  lasting  an  entire  month,  through  that 
province,  the  patriots  underwent  the  greatest  hardships  and  sufferings. 
Tlicy  finally  came  upon  the  enemy  at  La  Guya,  on  the  27th  of  June, 
1819,  and  dislodged  them  from  a  strong  position,  which  might  have 
been  made  good,  even  against  an  overv^helming  force.  A  succession 
of  brilliant  victories  ensued.  On  the  1st  of  July,  in  the  Valley  of 
Siigumoao,  in  Tunja,  Bolivar  encountered  the  royalist  army,  under 
Bureyro,  and,  after  an  obstinate  conflict,  protracted  till  late  in  the 
night,  compelled  it,  in  great  disorder,  to  retreat.  On  the  25th  of  the 
.mime  month,  at  Pantano  de  Bargas,  after  a.battle  of  five  hours,  con- 
tested with  great  desperation,  the  royal  forces  were  again  defeated, 
iiiul  fled  in  confusion,  leaving  their  artillery,  baggage,  and  treasure 
on  the  field.  Pursued  by  the  army  of  liberation,  they  were  over- 
taken, on  the  7th  of  August,  at  the  bridge  of  Boyaca,  and  again 
siiffiTcd  a  defeat  so  overwhelming  as  almost  to  decide  the  fate  of  the 
war.  Their  general,  with  a  great  number  of  ofRcers  and  sixteen 
Imndred  men  (more  than  half  their  number),  were  made  prisoners; 
a  great  quantity  of  munitions  of  war  fell  inlo  the  hands  of  tl  patri- 
ots; and  the  relics  of  the  royalist  troops,  pursued  by  Santand  /,  fled 
from  the  scene  of  action. 

On  receipt  of  this  startling  intelligence,  the  viceroy,  Samana,  pre- 
cipitately quitted  Santa  P'e,  leaving  all  his  military  stores  and  a  trea- 
sure of  some  millions  of  dollui-s.  The  whole  fell  into  the  hands  of 
tilt'  patriot  army,  who  were  received  at  the  capital  of  New  Granad.i 
with  the  utmost  exultation;  and  Bolivar,  his  title  of  Liberator  eon- 
firiiifU  by  these  extraordinary  exploits  and  their  .splendid  result,  was 
welcomed  by  the  jii*oplo  with  a  transport  of  joy  and  enthusiasm. 
He  had,  indeed,  well  earned  their  gratitude  and  admiration,  having 
in  the  brief  space  of  three  months,  in  the  face  of  innumerable  m'tural 
obstacles,  defeated  and  disjHirsed  an  army  three  times  greater  iiian 
his  own,  and  liberated,  in  rapid  succession,  the  most  oppressed  prov- 


um 


i 


iii 


834 


THE   PEOl'LE'8  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


•-*!«: 


*!* 


iiic'«^s  of  New  Grntiada.  Improving  with  the  greatest  diligonco  tlioso 
advantages,  by  the  2()th  of  September,  he  had  two  armies  on  foot  for 
the  Hberation  of  the  provinces  of  ti  u  iiorth  und  south,  still  in  pos.scs- 
tiion  of  the  enemy ;  and  having  established  a  provisional  goverimient 
he  posted  with  wonder^'M  rapidity  tq  Angostura,  where  the  Venezu- 
elan congress  was  in  session.     (December,  1819.) 

In  an  address  to  that  body,  after  commemorating  the  achievements 
of  his  little  army,  he  announced  the  desire  of  New  Granada  for  a 
|K)litical  union  of  the  two  states,  and  his  own  conviction  of  the 
necessity  of  the  measure  in  ensuring  the  Independence  of  South 
America.  So  great  was  the  weight  of  his  personal  influence,  and  so 
apparent  were  the  advantages  likely  to  result  from  the  arrangement 
that  on  the  17th  of  the  month  ft  law  was  passed,  providing  for  the 
union  of  the  two  provinces,  under  the  title  of  the  "Republic  of  Co- 
lombia," consolidating  the  national  debts,  ordaining  the  erection  of 
a  capital,  to  bear  the  name  of  their  deliverer,  and  summoning  a 
general  congress,  to  meet  in  January,  1821,  with  power  to  form  a 
constituti«)n  for  the  new  commonwealth.  Tiiis  resolution  boinf 
communicated  to  the  republican  authorities  of  New  Granada,  tlie 
step  was  unanimously  approved,  and  in  the  midst  of  universal  exult- 
ation, the  new  commonwealth  was  solemnly  proclaimed  at  Santa  Fe 
de  liogota.  Ten  liberated  provinces  joyfully  acceded  to  the  Union. 
This  important  measure  ac  oiniilished,  the  president,  with  forces 
recruited  to  the  number  of  iv-n  <-;  f.  velve  thousand  men,  again  devoted 
his  energies  to  the  war. 

On  the  coast,  confsiderabif.  di^^^iatcrs  had  attended  the  patriot  arms. 
Me(jregor,  in  April,  1819,  after  havin/^  captured  Porto  Bello,  and 
held  it  for  three  we'jks,  was  overcome  by  a  royalist  force,  and  lost 
his  entire  command  of  one  thousand  men,  except  a  few  whoesciiped 
with  him  by  swimming  to  their  vessels.  Another  small  detachment, 
which  he  afterwards  left  at  Rio  de  la  Ilacha,  being  also  overpowered, 
blew  up  the  fort,  to  their  own  destruction,  rather  than  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  .'-Spaniards. 

Of  the  British  auxiliaries,  about  five  liunured  in  number,  en- 
gaged in  Bolivar's  last  campaign,  only  a  quarter  had  survived;  yet 
fresh  reinforcements  continued  to  arrive  from  the  sjime  quarter, 
(leneral  D'Evreux,  a  native  of  Ireland,  (naturalized  a  citizen  of  the 
Fnitcd  States,)  raised  a  force  of  one  thou.sand  of  his  countrymen, 
with  whom  he  arrived  at  Colombia  in  season  for  the  campaign  of 
IS'-'O.     Bolivar,  after  repairing  to  the  capital  of  New  Granadi,  in 


8PANI3I1-AMEBICAN   KKVOLuflONS. 


QAo 


March  of  iiat  year,  encouraging  the  hopes  of  the  reptiblicntis,  and 
cementing  the  uniii'i  by  his  eloquence,  repaired  to  his  irmy  on  the 
^\purc.  llio  de  la  Ilauha  was  presently  taken,  and  the  southern 
urniy  of  New  Granada,  with  similar  success,  assailed  the  enemy,  and 
expelled  them  from  the  province  of  Popayan. 


LfiAilXiR     vll. 


REVOLUTION   IN   SPAIN. — OVERTURES  OP   THE   8PANl>'i    '     Al 
—  RESOLUTION   OP   THE   PATRIOTS. — THE   ARMISTIO 
WAR    RENEWED.  —  HUMANE    POLICY    OF   BOLIVAR. — h, 
VICTORIES  OP    THE    REPUBLICANS. — THE    SPANIAU!' 
COMPLETELY    EXPELLED    PROM    COLOMBIA. INDE- 
PENDENCE OP  THAT  STATE   ACKNOWLEDGED. 


Ii  I  "' 


.•A*!. 


'')      fkJ^ 


Meanwhile,  tlie  revolution  in  Spain,  reestablishing  the  Cortes, 
liad  tai<cn  place,  and  Morillo,  in  accordance  with  instructions  from 
the  new  government,  proposed  a  suspension  of  hostilities  and  the 
otietiing  of  negotiations.  The  Colombian  congress,  which  convened 
ill  Miiy,  declared,  in  reply,  that  they  would  with  pleasure  terminate 
hostilities,  but  on  no  other  condition  than  that  of  national  independ- 
eiiee.  Bolivar,  in  answer  to  the  official  announcement  of  Morillo, 
rejilied  in  the  same  svrain.  "The  republic  of  Colombia,"  he  says, 
"mo.st  sincerely  congratulates  itself  on  seeing  the  day  in  which  lib- 
erty pxtends  her  beneficent  influence  over  unhappy  Spain,  and  to 
sec  lier  ancient  metropolis  treading  in  the  steps  of  Colombia,  and 
ill  the  path  of  reason.  The  people  of  Colombia,  more  than  ten 
vt'iirs  ago,  resolved  to  consecrate  the  last  of  its  members  to  the  only 
c!Ui.se  worthy  of  the  sacrifice  of  peace — that  is,  the  cause  of  an  op- 
|ir('!<sed  country;  and  confiding  in  the  sacredness  of  their  cause,  in 
the  most  solemn  manner,  on  the  20th  of  November,  1818,  resolved 
to  combat  perpetually  against  all  exterior  domination,  and  not  to  be 
reconciled  to  peace  but  upon  the  recognition  of  absolute  independ- 
ence." lie  enclosed  the  law  referred  to,  and  avowed  his  readiness 
to  receive  the  royalist  commissioners. 

The  arms  of  the  republicans,  meanwhile,  though  no  very  decisive 
hattlc  took  place,  were  continually  gaining  ground,  and  the  hopes 
xtl'  tlie  Spaniards  to  rfigain  ascendency  were  proportionably  dimin- 


^  MLi^. 


^\1 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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1.0    Jfi^l 


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1.25 


2.5 


22 
2.0 


1.4 


1.6 


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V. 


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y 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


33  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  NY    14580 

(716)  873-4503 


L<p 


o^ 


f^ 


836 


THB  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


ishing.  Besides  these  advantages,  Guayaquil,  with  a  number  of  tlie 
adjacent  provinces,  succeeded  in  throwing  off  the  Spanish  yoke. 
Maracaibo  followed  the  example ;  and  all  the  northern  part  of  New 
Granada,  except  the  city  ofCarthagena,  and  the  isthmus  of  Panama 
by  the  beginning  of  1821,  was  in  the  hands  of  the  patriots.  Despite 
the  triumphant  success  in  arms  which  these  events  portended,  Boli- 
var, willing  to  spare  the  effusion  of  blood,  in  November,  1820,  had 
consented  to  an  armistice,  while  negotiations  should  be  attempted. 
It  was  resolved,  however,  that  no  terms,  save  those  of  absolute  inde- 
pendence, should  be  accepted  from  Spain,  and  the  congress,  with 
cogent  argument,  in  their  manifesto,  assign  reasons  for  this  deter- 
mination. "On  commencing  hostilities,"  affirms  that  document 
"  Colombia  neither  had  great  armies  nor  the  materials  to  form  them- 
to-day  she  has  skillful  generals,  expert  officers,  veteran  soldiers 
inured  to  war,  and  plenty  of  arms  and  ammunition. 

"Many  citizens  were  then  afraid  of  being  soldiers;  now  they  are 
all  in  arms,  and  delight  in  being  so.  Colombians  are  no  longer 
what  they  were ;  and  the  population  of  Colombia  are  a  new  people 
regenerated  by  a  ten  years'  contest,  in  which  have  disappeared  tliose 
physical  and  moral  disqualifications  which  rendered  her  independence 
doubtful,  and  are  become  worthy  and  fit  to  govern  themselves,  instead 
of  obeying  another's  will,  or  any  sovereignty  but  their  own." 

Morillo,  afler  the  ratification  of  the  armistice,  returned  to  Spain 
where  the  cruelties  which  he  had  exercised  toward  the  patriots  were 
rewarded  with  the  title  of  Count  of  Carthagena.  Negotiation  had 
j)roved  unsuccessful,  and  in  the  month  of  April,  1821,  both  parties, 
the  Spanish  under  Morales  and  La  Torre,  prepared  for  hostilities. 
The  Colombian  government  had  sent  commissioners  to  Spain,  where, 
in  May,  1821,  a  project  for  bestowing  a  representative  government 
on  the  refractory  colonies  wa.s  agitated  in  the  Cortes,  but  was  fimilly 
rejected  on  account  of  the  determined  objections  of  Ferdiimnd.  On 
the  17th  uf  April,  1821,  Bolivar  issued  a  protrlamation  to  tlic  army, 
affirming  that  Spain,  though  herself  in  possession  of  a  representative 
government,  was  still  inclined  to  establish  tyranny  over  the  prov- 
inces. He  appointed  hostilities  to  recommence  at  the  end  of  tho 
month,  commanding,  however,  that  the  war  should  be  conducted 
according  to  the  law  of  nations,  on  penalty  of  capital  punishment 
against  all  transgressors;  "if  the  enemy,"  he  adds,  "should  disre- 
gard these  regulations,  we  shall  not  imitate  them;  the  glory  of 
Colombia  shall  not  be  stained  with  blood  dishonourably  shed." 


SPANISn-AMEBICAN   BEVOLUTIONB. 


887 


On  the  6th  of  May,  the  general  congress  convened  at  Rosario  de 
Cucuta,  and  Bolivar  made  to  them  a  formal  resignation  of  his  office 
of  president,  considering  it  as  incompatible  with  the  chief  military 
command;  but  yielding  to  the  earnest  persuasions  of  that  body, 
consented,  for  a  time,  to  continue  to  exercise  the  chiefpowerof  both 
departments  in  his  single  person. 

Hostilities  resumed,  the  patriots,  under  Urdaneta,  seized  upon 
Core.  Another  division,  under  Bermudez,  gained  temporary  pos- 
gession  of  Caraccas  itself,  but  were  compelled  to  retire  by  Morales. 
In  the  month  of  June,  that  general,  with  La  Torre,  had  concentrated 
an  army  of  six  thousand  men  on  the  plains  of  Carobobo.  The  army 
of  liberation,  nearly  the  same  in  number,  under  Bolivar  and  the 
brave  Paez,  on  the  24th  of  June,  passing  through  a  defile  in  the 
mountains,  engaged  them.  Such  was  the  impetuosity  of  their  charge, 
that  the  royalist  forces,  with  the  exception  of  a  few,  who  took  refuge 
in  Porto  Cabello,  were  completely  defeated  and  dispersed.  The  loss 
of  the  patriots,  in  killed  and  woun^d,  was  abov  t  four  hundred.  Hav- 
ing ordered  Porto  Cabello  to  be  besieged,  and  taken  other  measures 
against  the  discomfited  enemy,  Bolivar  marched  toward  Caraccas, 
which  city,  abandoned  by  the  royalists  on  the  29th  of  June,  he  entered 
amid  the  exulting  transports  of  a  vast  multitude  of  the  people. 

On  the  28d  of  September,  Carthagena  surrendered  to  the  squadron 
under  Brion,  Cumana  was  presently  occupied  by  Bermudez,  and 
nothing  remained  to  the  Spaniards  but  Porto  Cabello,  Quito  and 
the  isthmus  of  Panama.  The  latter,  in  December,  declared  itself 
independent  of  the  Spanish  government,  and  signified  its  desire  to 
be  enrolled  in  the  republican  confederacy.  Bolivar  was  now  at  lib- 
erty to  direct  his  main  strength  against  the  royalists  of  the  south, 
and,  accordingly,  in  the  spring  of  1822,  with  an  army  of  seven 
thousand  men,  he  gave  battle  to  the  enemy,  who  had  concentrated 
their  forces  at  Pichincha.  The  result  was  a  complete  and  overwhelm- 
ing victory,  due,  in  great  measure,  to  the  exertions  of  the  brave  young 
General  Sucre;  and  the  liberating  army,  amid  the  universal  ftcclama- 
tious  of  the  enfranchised  citizens,  entered  Quito  in  triumph. 

On  the  coast,  the  republicans  were  greatly  annoyed  for  a  time  by 
Morales,  who,  by  his  vessels,  carried  on  a  species  of  piratical  war- 
fare, but  whose  fleet,  commanded  by  Laborde,  on  the  28d  of  July, 
1828,  was  utterly  defeated  and  destroyed  by  the  Colombian  squad- 
ron, under  General  Padilla.  The  Spaniards  lost  in  killed,  wounded, 
and  prisoners,  nearly  two  thousand  men,  and  Morales,  in  consequence, 
Vol.  III.— 22 


838 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


was  compelled  to  surrender  at  Maracaibo.  Despite  the  atrocities 
which  he  had  committed,  and  the  forfeiture  of  his  rights  as  a 
prisoner  of  war,  he  was  treated  humanely,  and,  with  his  men,  was 
permitted  to  embark  for  Cuba.  Porto  Cabello,  the  Spanish  fleet 
destroyed,  was  closely  invested  both  by  land  and  sea;  and  on  the 
Ist  of  December,  1823,  La  Torre,  who  commanded  it,  was  compelled 
to  capitulate. 

With  this  event  ended  a  civil  war,  lasting  for  twelve  years,  con- 
tested in  a  hundred  battles,  and  distinguished  for  almost  innumera- 
ble scenes  of  courage,  of  cruelty,  of  indomitable  patriotism  and 
obstinate  tyranny.  Though  the  arms  of  the  patriots  were  disgraced 
by  many  excesses,  it  must  be  remembered  that  they  were  the  last  to 
adopt  and  the  first  to  relinquish  that  savage  system  of  internecine 
vengeance  which  converts  warfare  into  murder,  and  reduces  man  to 
the  wild  elements  of  his  barbarous  nature.  These  excesses  on  the 
part  of  the  republicans,  may  be  palliated,  in  some  degree,  by  the 
insidious,  but  not  altogether  inadmissable  plea  of  necessity,  while 
the  wonderful  qualities  of  bravery,  endurance,  and  perseverance 
displayed  in  their  protracted  struggle,  must  always  secure  the 
respect  and  admiration  of  the  historical  reader. 

In  August  of  1821,  the  congress  had  adopted  a  constitution,  and 
Bolivar  had  been  elected  president  under  its  provisions.  The  nation 
first  to  recognize  the  independence  of  the  new  republic  of  Colombia 
was,  of  right,  that  which  had  first  set  the  example  of  resistance  to 
foreign  domination  —the  United  State?  '»<"  America.  The  European 
powers,  though  in  general  tacitly  m-  og  the  actual  existence  of 
the  new  state,  were  more  tardy  in  muK.ug  formal  acknowledgment 
of  its  independence. 

The  transactions  of  IJolivar  in  Peru,  after  the  liberation  of  hi8 
own  people,  have  already,  in  the  history  of  that  country,  been  briefly 
described.  Having  traced  the  Colombian  revolution  from  its  com- 
mencement to  its  final  success,  to  the  expulsion  of  the  Spaniards 
and  thd  establishment  of  a  republican  government,  we  leave  it — the 
subsequent  domestic  troubles  of  the  new  republic,  and  its  separation 
into  the  independent  states  of  Equador,  New  Granada,  and  Vene- 
zuela, not  coming  properly  within  the  limits  of  our  subject.  Of  late 
years,  indeed,  in  the  South  American  states,  revolutions  and  pro- 
nunciamentos  have  succeeded  each  other  with  such  startling  rapidity 
afl  almost  to  baffle  the  compiler  of  news,  and  to  warrant  their  pres- 
ent exclusion  from  the  province  of  history. 


BOLIVIA. 


fHB  EBYOLUTION  IN  LA  PAZ. — A  JUNTA  ESTABLISHED. — THE 
CITY  TAKEN  BY  THE  ROYALISTS. — THEIR  CRUELTIES. — THE 
PATRIOT    ARMY    MARCHES    PROM    BUENOS    AYRE8. — ITS 
SUCCESS  AND  SUBSEQUENT  DEFEAT- — SECOND  ATTEMPT 
AT  REVOLUTION.  —  MASSACRES  IN  COCHABAMBA  AND 
POTOSI. — SECOND     EXPEDITION     PROM     BUENOS 
AYRE8.  —  ITS  DISCOMFITURE. — GUERILLA  WAR- 
PARE. — BOLIVIA     EMANCIPATED     BY     THE 
VICTORY  OF  AYACUCHO. 

The  seven  provinces  now  known  as  Bolivia,  and  formerly  aa 
Upper  Peru,  were  the  earliest  theatre  of  war  between  the  patriots 
and  the  tyrants  of  South  America;  but,  the  operations  in  these  terri- 
tories having  been  mainly  carried  on  by  the  republicans  of  Buenos 
Ayres,  (or  the  United  Provinces,)  their  relation  may  be  mostly 
deferred  to  the  account  of  the  revolution  in  that  country.  Other 
events,  of  much  interest,  belong  more  exclusively  to  the  subject  of 
our  title. 

The  citizens  of  La  Paz,  deservedly  distinguished  for  their  courage 
and  intelligence,  on  the  25th  of  March,  1809,  excited  by  the  example 
of  Spain  in  forming  a  popular  government,  held  a  public  meeting  in 
that  city  to  consider  their  political  prospect  Having  deposed  the 
colonial  authorities  and  created  a  provisional  executive,  they  pro- 
claimed their  right  to  an  elective  government,  in  the  same  manner 
as  exercised  by  Spain  itself.  To  suppress  this  popular  movement, 
an  army,  under  Cieto,  was  dispatched  against  them  by  Cisneros,  the 
viceroy  of  Buenos  Ayres,  and  another  from  Peru,  under  the  ferocious 
Goyeneche.  The  latter,  arriving  first  before  La  Paz,  took  it,  after 
a  resolute  defence,  and  executed  numbers  of  the  principal  citizens. 
Cisneros,  to  whom  he  applied  for  directions,  commanded  that  all  in 
prison  should  be  put  to  death ;  but  fortunately,  before  this  sanguin- 
ary measure  was  accomplished,  the  revolution  in  Buenos  Ayres,  over 
throwijig  his  nuthority,  saved  tlie  lives  of  a  portion  of  the  victims 


■Sj» 


340 


TU£  FKOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOBT. 


La  Paz,  however,  was  almost  completely  depopulated;  and  the 
inhabitants  who  escaped,  betaking  themselves  to  the  mountains  and 
forests,  maintained  a  desperate  defence  against  the  royal  forces  until 
they  perished  by  famine  or  in  battle. 

The  revolution  in  Buenos  Ayres  having  broken  out,  and  a  popular 
government  being  established  there,  an  army  was  dispatched  against 
the  royalists  in  Upper  Peru.  Balcarce,  the  commander,  after  gainintr 
several  victories,  and  exercising  some  sanguinary  reprisals,  with  six 
thousand  men  approached  the  royal  army,  somewhat  less,  under 
Goyeneche,  at  the  village  of  Desaguedero.  An  armistice  for  forty 
days,  however,  was  concluded,  which  enabled  the  latter  to  strengthen 
his  foioes,  and  by  appealing  to  the  religious  fanaticism  of  his  igno- 
rant soldiery,  (assuring  them  that  the  Buenos  Ayreans  had  come 
to  take  away  their  religion,  and  that  the  Virgin  in  person  had  taken 
charge  of  their  own  ranks,)  inflamed  their  zeal  and  courage  to  the 
highest  point.  His  object  effected,  on  the  20th  of  July,  1811,  with- 
out waiting  for  the  conclusion  of  tiie  armistice,  he  attacked  the 
patriot  army  at  Guaqui  with  such  suddenness  and  fury,  that  they 
were  u)mpletely  routed,  and  fled  from  the  field,  leaving  all  their 
artillery  and  baggage  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  Upper  Peru,  afler 
this  decisive  defeat,  remained,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  hands  of  the 
royalists  until  the  memorable  victory  of  Sucre,  at  Ayacucho,  in  1824 
and  his  liberation  of  the  long-oppressed  provinces  of  Peru. 

In  1813,  enkindled  by  the  victory  of  Belgrano,  in  Salta,  over  the 
royalist  army,  the  flame  of  revolution  again  broke  out  in  the  depart- 
menU)  of  La  Paz  and  Cochabamba.  The  Spaniards  were  expelled 
from  the  latter  by  the  patriots  under  Arce,  and  a  junta  was  established 
in  its  capital.  Goyeneche,  with  the  flower  of  his  army,  marched 
against  that  city,  and,  though  the  junta  would  have  submitted  to  hia 
superior  force,  the  inhabitants,  preferring  every  extremity  of  war  to 
Spanish  mercy,  re.solved  to  hold  out  to  the  last  "The  city  was 
defended  with  matchless  valour  and  resolution ;  the  inhabitiints  fuugbt 
with  a  fury  and  desperation  which  nothing  but  tyranny  and  cruelty 
could  inspire;  the  women  mixed  promiscuously^  with  the  men,  and 
conibattcd  with  equal  ardour  and  courage,  regardless  alike  of  hard- 
ships and  dangers.  But  the  patriots  had  more  bravery  than  discipline; 
their  efforts  were  irregular,  and  thej  were  in  a  great  measure  desti- 
tute of  arms,  but  they  fought  with  the  best  weapons  they  could 
obtain.  After  a  most  fearful  struggle,  the  royalists  entereil  the 
citj  over  the  dead  bodies  of  iba  inhabitaots;  such  as  survived  were 


8  P  A  N  1 8  n  -  A  M  E  R I  C  A  N   R  E  V  O  L  U  T  1  O  N  S . 


841 


devoted  to  massacre  and  rapine.  The  city  was  delivered  up  to  the 
lawless  plunder  of  a  ferocious  soldiery,  and  exhibited  a  picture  of 
desolation  and  horror."* 

While  these  atrocities  were  enacting  in  Cochabamba,  another 
insurrection,  which  had  broken  out  in  Potosi,  was  suppressed  by 
Emas,  an  officer  of  Goyeneche,  with  the  same  savage  ferocity.  More 
than  sixty  villages  were  laid  waste,  and  the  country  was  converted 
into  a  desert;  and  the  brutal  commander,  when  finally  satiated  with 
massacre,  amused  himself  by  cutting  off  the  ears  of  the  patriots 
whom  he  captured,  and  setting  them,  thus  disfigured,  at  liberty. 
Reinforced  by  troops  from  Lima,  the  royalist  forces  defeated  Belgrano 
and  the  army  of  Buenos  Ayres,  in  two  sanguinary  engagements. 
The  survivors  from  the  massacre  of  Cochabamba,  escaping  into  the 
Valla  Grande,  and  uniting  with  the  patriots  of  Santa  Cruz,  gained, 
indeed,  some  signal  advantages;  and  a  partisan  warfare,  distinguished 
by  great  rancour  and  cruelty  on  both  sides,  was  waged,  with  much 
success  to  the  republican  arms.  La  Paz  was  retaken  from  the  roy- 
alists, who  in  their  malice  poisoned  all  the  springs  of  water  in  that 
city,  and  blew  up  a  barrack,  by  which  three  hundred  of  the  patriots 
were  killed.  Such  was  the  fury  inspired  in  the  latter  by  these  out- 
rages, that  they  cut  the  throat  of  every  Spaniard  in  the  city. 

Reverses  soon  overtook  the  insurgents  in  their  defeat  by  Pezuela, 
and  their  forced  retreat  toward  Cuzco.  Conspicuous  in  their  ranks 
was  an  Indian  wimed  Pomakagua,  who,  in  the  war  with  Tupac 
Amaru,  had  taken  the  royal  side,  and  had  been  rewarded  with  the 
title  of  general  and  with  other  honours.  This  bold  chief,  assuming 
the  republican  cause,  had  attacked  Arequipa,  where,  after  a  sharp 
fight,  he  defeated  the  royalists,  and  took  the  town,  with  the  Spanish 
governor  and  commander-in-chief;  but  was  finally  defeated,  after 
displaying  the  most  heroic  valour,  by  Pezuela  and  Ramirez,  and 
with  other  prisoners  suffered  death  by  execution  at  Cuzco. 

Rondeau,  commanding  an  army  of  Buenos  Ayreans,  now  advanced 
into  the  country,  and,  after  gaining  two  victories,  took  posses-sion  of 
Potosi  and  Cochabamba.  In  attempting  to  keep  open  the  communi- 
cation l)etwcen  these  two  places,  he  was  defeated  at  the  hard-fought 
battle  of  Sipesipe,  and  the  unfortunate  Cochabambians,  who  had 
prepared  triumphal  arches  in  honour  of  his  anticipated  victory,  once 
more  beheld  their  city  a  prey  to  rapine  and  massacre.  After  this 
signal  defeat,  the  Buenos  Ayreans  were  unable  to  maintain  possession 

*  Niles'  History  of  South  America  and  Mexico. 


S42 


THE  PSOFLE'B  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


of  the  upper  provinces,  and  the  war  was  reduced  to  a  guerilla  con- 
test,  in  which  Padilla,  Warnes,  and  other  popular  leaders,  still  maia- 
tained  the  cause  Of  independence. 

The  great  victory  of  IBolivar's  general,  Sucre,  over  the  royal  army 
at  Ayacucho,  in  1824,  was  decisive,  not  only  of  the  fate  of  Peru, 
but  of  the  adjoining  provinces.  The  victorious  general  marched  into 
Upper  Peru,  where  many  of  the  royalist  garrisons  surrendered  with- 
out opposition,  or  declared  in  favour  of  independence.  Olaneta,  the 
chief  commander  in  that  region,  after  an  ineffectual  resistance,  was 
slain,  and  all  the  troops  in  the  country,  to  the  number  of  five  or  six 
thousand,  surrendered.  The  total  result  of  that  splendid  victory 
indeed,  was  a  loss  to  the  enemy,  in  the  two  Perus,  of  more  than 
eighteen  thousand  men,  in  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners.  The 
Brazilians,  who  had  commenced  aggressions  against  the  distracted 
state,  were  compelled,  by  the  prompt  resistance  of  the  patriot  general 
to  withdraw  their  forces. 

The  country  freed  from  foreign  domination,  a  general  congress, 
convened  at  Chiquisaca,  on  the  6th  of  August,  1825,  published  a 
declaration  of  independence,  averring  that  "the  happy  day  has 
arrived  when  Upper  Peru  has  become  liberated  from  unjust  power, 
from  the  tyrannic  and  wretched  Ferdinand  VII.,  and  this  fertile 
region  has  escaped  the  debasing  relation  of  a  colony  of  Spain- 
that  it  is  important  to  its  welfare  not  to  incorporate  itself  with  any 
of  the  co-terminous  republics,  but  to  erect  itself  into  a  sovereign  and 
independent  state,  in  relation  to  the  new  as  well  as  the  old  world* 
that  the  provinces  of  Upper  Peru,  firm  and  unanimous  in  their  reso- 
lution, proclaim  to  the  whole  earth  that  they  will  govern  themselvesi 
under  their  own  constitution,  laws,  and  authorities,  in  that  way 
which  they  may  think  most  conducive  to  the  prosperity  of  the  nation, 
the  inviolable  support  of  the  Catholic  religion,  and  the  maintenance 
of  the  sacred  rights  of  honour,  life,  liberty,  equality,  property  and 
security.  To  carry  into  effect  this  determination,  they  bind  themselves 
through  this  sovereigp  representation,  by  their  lives,  j)roperty,  and 
sacred  honour."  It  is  supposed  that  Bolivar,  whose  armies  had  accom- 
plished their  liberation,  had  desired  the  union  of  these  provinces  with 
those  of  Ijower  Peru ;  but  he  offered  no  interference  with  the  free 
action  of  the  peo{)le  he  had  served.  In  honour  of  the  Liberator  of 
South  America,  the  title  of  Bolivia  was  adopted  by  the  new  state,  and 
suitable  rewards  and  honours  were  decreed  to  Sucre,  and  to  the  jiatriot 
army  to  which  it  was  indebted  for  its  rescue  from  Spanish  tyranny. 


•  i: 


UNITED  PROVINCES  OF  LA  PLATA. 


'.hn 


■t  ■■Mi 


;jr 


.li 


CXI  A  D  T  1?  15     T 


.  ■■     -.ui 
;•  ■  .iUiti 

■l;  jjl  V 


CiV8E8  or  THE   RSTOLUTION    IN    BVINOS  ATREa — THB  TICBROTS 
1IKIBB8  AND  CI8NBR08. — THEIR  PATB. — WARS  WITH  THB 
ROYALISTS  IN  UPPER  PERU:  IN  MONTE  TIDBO. — ^DISSEN- 
SIONS AMONG    THE   PATRIOTS. — RAPID  CHANGES  Of 
OOTBRNMBNT. — ALTERNATE    SUCCESSES    OP  THB 
PATRIOTS  AND  ROYALISTS. — SAN  MARTIN. —       ■        ' 
PALL    OP    MONTE    VIDEO. — ELECTION    OP 
PUBYREDON  AS  8UPREMB  DIRECTOR. 


The  almost  interminable  civil  feuds — the  innumerable  succession 
of  general  or  local  rulers,  and  the  inextricably  tangled  condition  of 
domestic  politics  in  the  government  or  governments  of  those  exten- 
sive provinces,  watered  by  the  Rio  de  la  Plata,  and  since  known  as 
the  Argentine  Republic,  (or  Republic  of  La  Plata,)  during  their  pro- 
tracted revolution,  will  necessarily  confine  the  account  of  that  strug- 
gle to  the  facts  most  important  in  their  emanri  nation  from  Spanish 
authority.  The  first  impulse  to  that  emanc.;);;tion  was  given,  as 
with  all  the  South  American  states,  by  the  diaiurbed  condition  of 
the  government  at  home. 

When,  in  July,  1808,  news  arrived  at  Buenos  Ayres  of  the 
"cessions  of  Bayou ne,"  and  the  consequent  a^endency  of  the  French 
interest  in  Spain,  tlie  viceroy,  Liniers,  exerted  his  influence  in  favor 
of  Napoleon.  Elio,  the  governor  of  Monte  Video,  accusing  him  of 
treason,  separated  his  own  province  from  its  allegiance,  and  found 
his  conduct  approved  by  Goyeneche,  agent  of  the  Spanish  revolu- 
tionary junta.  The  latter,  as  we  have  seen,  however,  used  every 
exertion,  and  committed  every  cruelty  in  attempting  to  suppress  a 
spirit  of  revolution  in  the  colonies. 


844 


TUK  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


The  leaders  of  the  patriot  party  in  Buenos  Ayres — Castelli,  Bel- 
graoo,  Chiclana,  Thompson,  and  others — undeterred  by  the  terrible 
example  of  the  patriots  at  La  Paz,  resolved  to  take  advantage  of 
these  disturbances  to  erect  a  popular  government.  By  secret  influ. 
ence,  they  gained  over  three  regiments  quartered  in  the  city,  to  the 
popular  cause,  and  when,  in  May,  1810,  news  arrived  of  the  proba- 
ble subjugation  of  the  peninsula  by  the  French,  the  municipal 
authorities  summoned  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  to  consider  their 
condition.  At  this  assembly,  after  long  and  animated  debate,  the 
people,  protected  by  an  armed  guard,  passed  resolutions  deposing  the 
viceroy,  Cisneros,  and  creating  a  provisional  government. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Monte  Video,  these  proceedings 
were  approved,  and  adhesion  was  promised  to  the  new  government- 
but  the  Spaniards  in  that  city,  landing  troops  from  the  vessels  in  ^e 
harbour,  were  enabled,  by  the  aid  of  the  deposed  viceroys,  Liniers 
and  Cisneros,  and  the  Spanish  governors  of  Paraguay  and  other 
provinces,  to  create  a  formidable  opposition.  They  were,  however 
defeated  by  the  popular  forces;  Cisneros  and  others  were  compelled 
to  quit  the  country,  while  Liniers  and  other  commanders  who  had 
openly  levied  war  and  ravaged  the  country,  were  executed. 

The  patriot  army,  which,  under  General  Balcarce,  had  been  dis- 
patched  against  the  Spaniards  of  Upper  Peru,  at  first  met  with 
complete  success,  defeating  the  royalist  army,  though  strongly 
posted,  after  an  obstinate  action,  at  Suypacha,  and  executing  the 
captive  generals  Nieto,  Sanz,  and  Cordova.  The  victory  of  Tupiza 
followed,  and  the  Buenos  Ayrean  army  was  in  possession  of  a  great 
part  of  the  country;  but  Goyeneche,  violating,  as  we  have  seen,  the 
armistice  agreed  upon,  defeated  them,  and  regained  possession  of 
most  of  the  country.  His  army,  however,  was  greatly  annoyed  by 
numerous  parties  of  guerillas,  which  harassed  it  with  continued 
desultory  attacks,  and  prevented  his  complete  occupation  of  the 
country ;  and,  although  he  issued  the  savage  order  that  every  pris- 
oner should  he  shot,  ke  was  unable  to  repress  this  last  resource  of 
a  wronged  and  ciesperate  people. 

Elio,  who  had  now  been  appointed  by  the  Spanish  government 
as  viceroy  over  the  provinces  of  Rio  de  la  Plata,  held  that  of  Monte 
Video  or  the  Banda  Oriental,  (since  known  a.s  the  state  of  Uraguav,) 
and  opposed  a  formidable  hostility  to  the  republican  cause;  but  the 
patriot  troops,  under  Rondeau  and  Artigas,  having  gained  a  signal 
victory  over  the  royalists  of  Las  Piedras,  marched  against  his  capital. 


8PANISH-AMKBI0AM   BKVOLUTIONS. 


846 


to  which  they  laid  siege.  The  viceroy,  in  despair,  applied  for  as- 
eistance  to  the  Portuguese  government  in  Brazil,  and  through  the 
influence  of  the  Princess  Charlotte,  sister  to  Ferdinand  VII.,  obtained 
four  thousand  men,  which,  under  General  Sousa,  were  dispatched 
to  his  assistance.  On  the  arrival  Of  these  levies,  a  truce  was  con* 
eluded,  the  patrio^  and  the  Portuguese  both  engaging  to  return  to 
their  homes — an  agreement,  however,  violated  by  the  latter,  who 
continued  hostilities  in  the  provinces  of  the  Rio  de  la  Plata.  Buenos 
Ayres  was  now  threatened,  both  by  the  latter  and  by  the  royalists 
of  Upper  Peru,  who  had  defeated  the  republican  army  dispatched 
thither,  and  had  gained  possession  of  the  province  of  Salta;  but  the 
advance  of  the  Portuguese  was  checked  by  Sarratice,  a  member  of 
the  government,  who,  with  four  thousand  troops,  marched  against 
them.  By  a  treaty  with  the  Brazilian  minister,  (June,  1812,)  an 
indefinite  armistice  was  agreed  on,  and  the  foreign  troops  were  with- 
drawn from  the  territory.  Belgrano,  with  the  army  of  Peru,  having 
retreated  before  the  royalist  general,  Tristan,  to  Tacuman,  made  a 
stand  there,  and  on  the  24th  of  December,  defeated  his  antagonist 
with  a  loss  of  eleven  hundred  men,  in  killed,  wounded,  and  prisoners. 

During  these  transactions,  it  is  lAnost  impossible  to  keep  track  of 
the  continuul  changes  in  the  popular  government  of  Buenos  Ayres. 
Conspiracies  and  treasons  were  rife,  and,  on  one  occasion,  for  forming 
a  plot  to  defeat  the  revolution  and  put  to  death  the  principal  leaders, 
twenty  citizens,  some  of  them  wealthy  and  influential,  were  tried  and 
executed.  Elio  having  violated  the  treaty,  Monte  Video  was  again 
besieged,  and,  in  the  course  of  the  campaign,  Colonel  San  Martin, 
aflerwards  so  famous  as  the  Liberator  of  Chili,  first  distinguished 
himself  by  defeating  the  enemy  on  the  river  Parana.  (February, 
1813.)  At  the  same  time,  Belgrano,  being  reinforced,  attacked  the 
royalists  under  Tristan,  in  Salta,  and,  after  a  hard-fought  action  of 
four  hours,  again  defeated  them,  and,  in  effect,  made  prisoners  of  the 
whole  army.  This  advantage,  however,  was  lost  to  the  patriot 
arms,  in  consequence  of  the  treachery  of  Tristan,  who,  with  his 
troops,  having  been  permitted  to  depart  on  taking  oath  not  to  serve 
against  the  republicans,  nevertheless  immediately  joined  the  army 
of  Goyeneche. 

Pezuela,  who  succeeded  the  latter,  again  engaged  the  victorious 
general,  not  far  from  Potosi,  and  gained  the  advantage.  In  another 
action,  near  the  close  of  November,  the  patriots,  after  fighting  with 
admirable  coumge  and  obstinacy,  were  again   defeated,  and  were 


846 


•  TUK  1>£01'L£'8   UOOK  07  UIBTOST. 


compelled  once  more  to  relinquish  Upper  Peru  to  the  enemy. 
BuenoB  Ayres  waa  once  again  threatened  with  the  march  of  hostile 
armies  from  opposite  directions. 

In  this  disastrous  and  ominous  condition  of  affiurs,  the  valour  and 
genius  of  San  Martin,  vHo  succeeded  Belgrano,  came  most  oppor- 
tunely to  the  service  uf  the  patriot  cause.  In  a  br^ef  time,  he  raised 
a  fresh  army  of  three  thousand  five  hundred  men,  for  the  defence 
of  the  country,  and  so  skillfVilly  directed  the  operations  of  the  guer- 
illas that  the  enemy,  continually  harassed  and  deprived  of  provisions, 
were  compelled  to  relinquish  Salta  and  other  province^  to  the  repub< 
licans.  This  success  was  attended  by  others  equally  cheering.  The 
little  fleet  of  Buenos  Ayres,  commanded  by  Mr.  Brown,  an  English 
merchant  of  that  city,  gained  a  decided  victory  over  that  of  the 
enemy,  and  agisted  in  pressing  the  siege  of  Monte  Video.  Vigodet 
who  had  succeeded  Elio,  was  finally  compelled  to  surrender  to  the 
besieging  forces,  under  Alvear,  and  five  thousand  five  hundred 
prisoners,  with  eleven  thousand  muskets,  and  an  immense  quantity 
of  other  military  stores,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors. 

This  success  led  to  an  instant  renewal  of  anarchy  among  the 
patriots.  Artigas  claimed  and  •eized  the  government  of  Monte 
Video,  and  Alvear  (January,  1815)  gave  deep  discontent  by  obtaining 
the  chief  directorship  of  Buenos  Ayres.  Civil  dissensions  prevailed 
until  the  latter,  an  object  of  popular  odium,  was  compelled  to  lenvo 
the  country.  Foreign  disasters  succeeded  these  domestic  quarrels. 
By  the  victory  of  Sipeiipe,  in  November,  1815,  the  most  important 
provinces  in  Upper  Peru  were  again  thrown  into  possession  of  the 
royalists,  and  finally,  after  revolution  on  revolution,  the  supreme 
directorship,  under  better  auspices,  in  March,  1816,  was  conferred 
on  Juan  Martin  Pueyredon,  whose  election  quieted  the  factions  ii; 
the  capital,  and  for  a  time  gave  stability  to  the  government. 


t   'I 


■  PAMIBH-AMIRIOAN   RIVOLUTIONS.  847 


riCDS    OF    THl   PATRIOTS. — OBSTINAOT   OF   iBTIOAS. — TBI 

PORTDODBSI    TAII    MONTI    TIDIO,    AND    DIFIAT    THl 

RIPUBLIOAN  ARXT. — SAN    MARTIN. — HIS    PASSAGl 

OF  THl  ANDIS  AND  VICTORIOUS  CAMPAIGN  IN 

CHILI. — OPPIR  PIRU. — CONTINOID  Rl- 

*       |.„     .^     8ISTANCI0FTHIBANDA  ORIIHTAL.     .       r      ,    ,1 

After  providing  for  the  defence  of  the  country  against  its  external 
enemies,  the  director  turned  his  attention  to  reconciling  or  crushing 
its  domestic  foes.  He  sent  a  supply  of  arms  and  munitions  to  Arti- 
gas,  at  Monte  Video,  to  assist  him  in  repelling  the  Portuguese;  but 
that  officer,  having  received  them,  refused  to  listen  to  overtures  of 
friendship.  At  Santa  Fe,  despite  the  attempts  of  the  capi'  u  to  over> 
awe  ur  negotiate,  the  citizens  maintained  an  attitude  of  determined 
hostility  to  the  general  government  Notwithstanding  thepe  untoward 
circumstances,  the  congress,  convened  from  a  number  of  states  on  the 
9th  of  July,  1816,  issued  a  manifesto,  declaring  the  independence  of 
the  United  Provinces  of  the  Rio  de  la  Plata. 

Meanwhile,  in  Upper  Peru,  the  arms  of  the  patriots  again  met 
with  considerable  success.  Colonel  Padilla,  attacked  by  a  division 
of  the  royalist  army,  entrusted  the  command  of  several  posts  to  his 
captains,  and  one  to  his  wi/e.  The  ouemy  assaulted  furiously,  but 
were  completely  repulsed  and  defeated,  and  were  pursued  by  the 
victors  till  they  arrived  at  a  place  of  defence.  The  lady  presented 
her  husband  a  standard  of  the  enemy,  taken  with  her  own  hands, 
and  was  aflerwards  appsopriately  rewarded  by  government  with  the 
commission  and  pay  of  a  iicutenant-colonel.  Another  victory  was 
obtained  by  Warnes  over  a  body  of  a  thousand  men,  commanded 
by  the  bloody  Facon,  in  which  the  latter  were  almost  entirely  de- 
stroyed. In  the  provinces  of  Salta  and  Jujuy,  Guemes  and  other 
guerilla  leaders  waged  a  desultory,  but  highly  successful  warfare. 

In  December,  1816,  the  Portuguese  made  a  grand  demonstration 
against  the  new  commonwealth.  Troops  were  shipped  from  Lisbon, 
and  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men  was  collected  at  Hio  Grande. 
This  force,  in  three  divisions,  under  Generals  Lecor,  Silvicra,  and 
Curau,  invaded  the  Banda  Oriental.    Despite  some  spirited  local 


■*;■  i 


848 


THE  PKOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY, 


opposition,  this  overwhelming  force  took  possession  of  the  capital 
Monte  Video,  and  Artigas  was  reduced  to  practice  a  guerilla  warfare 
against  the  invaders  in  the  open  country.  These  disasters  were  suc- 
ceeded by  a  severe  defeat  of  the  patriot  army,  under  La  Torre,  who 
after  a  sanguinary  action  at  Arayo  de  los  Catalanos,  were  routed 
with  great  loss.  In  the  face  of  these  miserable  reverses,  and  of  the 
general  desire  of  the  inhabitants  of  his  province,  Artigas  still  refused 
to  unite  with  the  confederacy. 

These  misfortunes  on  the  sea-board  were  in  some  degree  compen- 
sated by  the  splendid  success  of  San  Martin,  in  his  memorable  cam- 
paign of  Chili.  The  latter  cou  ntry  had  assisted  the  United  Provinces, 
with  men  and  money,  against  Elio ;  and  San  Martin,  now  governor 
of  Cuyo  or  Mendoza,  conceived  the  project  of  serving  the  cause  of 
freedom  it  both  countries,  by  a  vigorous  assault  on  the  common  enemy 
in  their  strongholds  of  Chili.  Though  his  province  was  thinly  peo- 
pled, and  much  wasted  and  impoverished  by  the  Spaniards,  so  great 
was  the  personal  devotion  of  the  people  to  their  chief,  that  they 
placed  all  their  means  and  services  at  his  disposal.  Six  hundred 
slaves,  three  hundred  horses,  and  ten  thousand  mules  were  provided  for 
the  service  of  the  expedition ;  troops  were  transported  from  Buenos 
Ayres:  and  after  a  year  spent  in  preparation  and  discipline,  the  daring 
commander  set  forth  on  an  expedition,  from  its  difficulties  and  extra- 
ordinary success,  one  of  the  most  memorable  in  martial  history. 

"  He  had  to  cross  the  majestic  Andes,  with  an  army  accompanied 
with  baggage  and  artillery,  which  for  three  hundred  miles  presented 
rugged  and  almost  inaccessible  summits  and  narrow  defiles,  admitting 
of  two  persona  only  abreast,  along  the  giddy  verge  of  frightful  pre- 
cipices, where  eternal  frosts  hold  their  undisputed  reign.  This  pass- 
age with  an  array  over  the  highest  mountains  in  the  world,  is  an 
achievement  more  daring  and  difficult  than  that  of  the  renowned 
Hannibal  in  crossing  the  Alps;  and  perhaps  there  is  nothing  on  the 
page  of  history  that  surpasses  it.  But  no  obstacles  could  shake  the 
purpose  of  San  Martin ;  no  difficulties  were  too  great  for  his  genius  to 
overcome.  In  thirteen  days  the  frozen  Andes  were  vanquished  and 
passed,  with  the  loss  of  five  thousand  horses  and  mules  and  of  a  few 
The  liberating  army,  soon  aft'jr,  encountered  the  enemy  at 


men. 


Chacabuco;  and  the  veterans  who  had  conquered  the  Andes,  ex{)e- 
ricnccd  no  difficulty  in  vanquishing  the  instruments  of  tyranny. 
Seldom  has  a  victory  been  more  complete  or  a  triumph  more  B})len- 

fliil         '  Tti   tivpntv-fniir  rlnvn  '  au'n]  the  nnmrnnrKlcr    '  uta    l>nv<»    nmaaoA 


SPANISH-AMElilCAN  REVOLUTIONS. 


849 


the  most  elevated  mountains  of  the  globe,  terminated  the  campaign, 
put  an  end  to  the  sway  of  tyrants  and  given  liberty  Uj  Chili.'  The 
remnant  of  the  royalists  took  refuge  in  Talcahuano.  The  inhabitants 
formed  a  junta  at  Santiago,  and  as  a  reward  for  his  services  offered 
to  San  Martin  the  dictatorship  of  Chili,  which  he  declined,  and  this 
power  was  vested  in  Bernardo  O'Higgins. 

"After  this  splendid  victory,  tJie  General  of  the  Andes,  as  San  Martin 
was  now  called,  returned  to  Buenos  Ayres  to  concert  a  plan  with 
the  government  to  direct  the  victorious  arms  of  the  republic  against 
Peru.  As  he  approached  Mendoza,the  capital  of  Cuyo,  all  the  in- 
habitants of  the  town  flocked  out  to  meet  him ;  the  youth  strewed 
the  road  with  roses,  and  all  demonstrated  the  most  lively  sensations 
of  admiration  and  joy  at  beholding  the  hero  of  the  Andes  and  the 
Liberator  of  Chili.  At  Buenos  Ayres,  the  same  sentiments  prevailed, 
and  preparations  were  making  to  receive  him  with  every  mark  of 
respect  and  honou";  but  being  apprized  of  what  was  intended,  he 
stole  into  the  city  aaobserved,  to  the  no  small  disappointment  of 
the  people."* 

In  Upper  Peru,  the  talent  and  energy  of  Belgrano  had  now,  in 
great  measure,  redeemed  the  republican  cause.  Serna,  the  chief 
commander  of  the  royalist  forces,  was  compelled  to  retreat  before  the 
attacks  of  the  guerillas,  and  the  ferocious  Facon  was  destroyed,  acci- 
dently  (or  providentially),  by  a  stroke  of  lightning.  The  Banda 
Oriental,  under  Artigas,  still  maintained  an  attitude  of  hostility  to 
the  rest  of  the  republic;  and  two  successive  detachments,  dispatched 
by  the  director  to  reduce  the  refractory  province,  under  Montes  de 
Oca  and  Colonel  Balcarce,  were  furiously  attacked  ty  the  Monte 
Yidean  chief,  and  completely  defeated. 

*  NilM*  South  Ameriuk. 


860 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


nTTAT)mriTj      TTT 


APPAIR8  IN  CHILI  — DISA8TBI13  OP  THB  PATRIOTS. — VICTORT 
OP  SAN   MARTIN  AT  THB  PLAINS  OP    MATPU. — INDBPEND- 
BNCB  OP  CHILI  SBCDRBD. — CONSTITUTION  OP  THB  UNITED 
PROVINCES. — RESIGNATION    OP     PUBTREDON. — CON- 
TINUED CIYIL  DISSENSIONS. — PINAL  RESTORATION 
OP   HARHONT. — THB  RBPUBLIO    ACKNOWLBDOED 
BY  THB  UNITED  STATES. 


In  Chili,  San  Martin  and  O'Higgins  were  now  strenuously  attempt- 
ing to  reduce  the  strong  fortress  of  Talcahuano,  the  last  refuge  of 
the  royalists  in  that  country.  But  the  viceroy  of  Lima  contrived  to 
throw  a  force  of  fifteen  hundred  men  into  the  disputed  post;  and 
not  long  after,  resolved  to  anticipate  the  intended  attack  of  San 
Martin  in  Peru,  landed  five  thousand  troops,  under  General  Osorio, 
at  the  same  place.  That  commander,  with  a  force  of  eight  thousand 
men,  now  assumed  the  offensive,  and  marched  for  the  capital  of  Chili. 
San  Martin,  after  somewhat  annoying  his  march,  on  the  19th  of 
March,  made  a  successful  attack  on  the  enemy,  whose  van  was  driven 
into  the  streets  of  Talca.  Bqt  that  same  night  the  royalist  general  in 
turn  attacked  the  encampment  of  the  patriots  with  such  suddenness 
and  fury  that  they  were  completely  routed,  and  San  Martin,  with  the 
relics  of  his  army,  was  compelled  to  retreat  to  the  pass  of  Angulemu. 

Undismayed  by  this  disaster,  he  betook  himself  to  the  capital, 
where,  by  extraordinary  exertions,  a  fresh  army  was  raised,  which, 
on  the  6th  of  April,  1818,  on  the  Plains  of  Maypu,  again  engaged 
the  enemy.  A  most  splendid  victory,  in  which  the  Spanish  armv 
was  nearly  annihilated,  was  the  result.  The  independence  of  Chili 
and  Peru  was  secured,  and  San  Martin,  the  object  of  enthusiastic 
gratitude  and  admiration,  his  project  fully  accomplished,  returned  to 
Buenos  Ay  res. 

On  the  25th  of  May,  1819,  the  congress  of  the  United  Provinces 
publicly  proclaimed  a  constitution,  of  a  federal  nature,  and  not  ma- 
terially differing  from  that  of  the  United  States  of  America.  Legis- 
lation was  vested  in  two  houses,  one  composed  of  deputies  elected  by 
the  people,  and  the  other  of  senators  elected  by  the  provinces.  The 
executive  fK)wer  wiis  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  single  person,  called 


Hf  ANISH-AMERICAN  REVOLUTIONS. 


851 


the  '  Tv  ctor.  Equality  of  all  citizens,  freedom  of  the  press,  &c.,  were 
annoiinced.  Soon  after,  Pueyredon,  considerable  disaffection  to  his 
person  existing,  resigned  the  office  of  supreme  director,  and  Joseph 
Kondeau  was  chosen  temporarily  to  fill  his  place,  until  the  election 
of  a  new  director  under  the  constitution. 

By  a  singular  complication  of  hostilities,  Artigas,  who  had  long 
been  bravely  defending  the  Banda  Oriental  against  the  overwhelming 
forces  of  Brazil,  after  receiving  the  assistance  and  rejecting  the  alli- 
ance of  the  commonwealth,  still  maintained  his  dubious  position. 
In  February  1820,  the  director  was  defeated  by  the  guerillas  called 
the  Monteneros,  headed  by  Bamirez,  an  officer  of  Artigas,  and  such 
was  the  effect  of  this  disaster  that  the  authority  of  the  central  gov- 
ernment was  completely  prostrated.  The  victor,  with  three  thousand 
men,  advanced  within  seventy  miles  of  Buenos  Ayres ;  and  Pueyre- 
don, with  his  friends,  the  chief  objects  of  enmity,  fled  to  the  Portu- 
guese for  safety.  Rondeau,  afler  his  defeat,  returned  to  the  capital, 
but  his  authority  was  at  once  overthrown,  and  a  provisional  govern- 
ment was  appointed  by  the  municipality.  Treaty  was  then  made 
with  Ramirez,  and  a  most  rapid  succession  of  revolutions  placed  the 
capital  in  the  hands  of  one  ambitious  chief  after  another.  A  disgrace- 
ful secret  negotiation  with  France  by  the  late  congress  was  discovered, 
intended  to  place  the  republic  under  the  control  of  that  country,  and 
all  the  members  who  had  favoured  it  were  put  under  arrest. 

The  state  of  anarchy,  especially  in  the  capital,  which  succeeded 
these  events  is  almost  beyond  description,  and  the  lives  of  many 
estimable  citizens  were  sacrificed  in  the  civil  feuds  by  which  the 
whole  state  was  distracted.  The  various  factions  under  Ramirez, 
Carrera,  and  Alvear,  and  under  Dorego  and  Rodriguez,  were  en- 
gaged in  civil  war,  which  finally,  after  various  vicissitudes,  resulted 
in  the  ascendancy  of  the  latter  at  the  seat  of  government.  (October, 
1820.)  Carrera,  indeed,  still  continued  desperately  to  ravage  the 
country ;  and  Ramirez,  the  army  of  Artigas  having  been  defeated  and 
almost  destroyed  by  the  Portuguese,  supplanted  that  chief  in  the 
command  of  the  Banda  Oriental,  and  threatened  the  city  of  Buenos 
Ayres.  On  the  21st  of  July,  1821,  however,  he  was  completely 
defeated  by  the  government  troops,  at  Francisco,  and  died  on  the 
field  of  battle,  only  two  hundred  of  his  men  escaping.  Carrera, 
whose  whole  career  had  been  distinguished  by  great  ferocity  and 
carnage,  was  also  defeated,  in  the  following  month,  and  on  the  4th 
of  September  was  shot  in  the  public  square  of  Mendoza.     Two  of 


mf'wj 


852 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOST. 


his  brothers  had  perished  on  the  same  spot,  and  the  only  favour  ho 
asked  was  a  burial  in  the  same  grave  with  them. 

These  civil  wars  at  lost  brought  to  a  close,  the  legislative  junta 
and  the  executive,  to  quiet  the  rancour  of  the  contending  factions 
passed  an  act  of  amnesty,  and  turned  their  attention  to  reforming  the 
administration  of  affairs.  In  September,  1821,  a  congress  from  the ' 
several  provinces  assembled  at  Cordova,  and  efforts  were  made  to 
bring  about  a  federal  union,  but  various  sectional  jealousies  prevented 
the  adoption  of  the  plan.  "The  commencement  of  the  year  1822 
found  the  affairs  of  the  United  Provinces  in  a  more  prosperous  con- 
dition ;  the  internal  enemies  of  the  republic  had  been  destroyed  or 
driven  out  of  the  country;  the  voice  of  faction  was  silenced;  the 
government  had  acquired  energy  and  respect,  and  was  engaged  in 
works  of  improvement,  in  forming  schools  and  establishing  libraries 
calculated  to  prepare  the  people  for  the  appreciation  and  enjoyment 
of  liberty.  The  papers  discussed  freely,  and  often  ably,  important 
political  questions  connected  with  their  new  situation.  A  splendid 
edifice  for  a  congressional  hall  was  erected  on  the  same  spot  where, 
in  1780,  were  reared  the  dungeons  of  Oruro,  in  which  were  immured 
those  accused  of  promoting  the  independence  of  Peru."*  Peace 
was  restored  with  Santa  Fe  and  with  other  provinces  heretofore  at 
enmity  with  Buenos  Ayres,  and  treaties  of  mutual  defence  and  alli- 
ance were  made.  The  Banda  Oriental  and  its  capital,  Monte  Video, 
were  still  retained  by  the  Portuguese  forces. 

In  July,  1823,  strenuous  attempts  were  made  to  negotiate  a  treaty 
of  peace  with  Spain ;  but  despite  the  liberal  conduct  of  the  congress, 
which  offered  twenty  millions  of  dollars  to  the  mother-country,  to 
secure  her  against  foreign  invasion,  the  Spanish  government  refused 
to  come  to  terms.  In  autumn  of  the  same  year,  Mr.  Rodney,  the 
minister  from  the  United  States,  and  the  first  envoy  received  by  the 
republic  from  any  foreign  power,  arrived  at  Buenos  Ayres.  Ilis 
presentation  to  the  government  took  place  with  extraordinary  state 
and  parade,  and  was  hailed  with  much  enthusiasm  by  the  people; 
but  he  did  not  long  survive  his  arrival,  dying  early  in  the  following 
year.  In  October,  1824,  Alvear,  the  minister  dispatched  in  return, 
was  presented  to  the  executive  of  the  United  States;  but  his  term 
of  cJice  was  equally  brief,  his  government  rScalling  hira  to  command 
the  army  destinetl  against  the  royalists  in  Upper  Peru. 

•  NUm'  South  America. 


>;'    ,-*;■»- 


?#- 


''S***". 


^s? 


#, 


'*S:A.' 


I 


SBl.t:ttH.1TIOA-    OF    THE    MASS,    IX    PREStUVCK    Of    THE     IXVI.iJfi 


f  ■' 


PART    III. 


«M«W«#WNMMtfWWNMAAAA 


€^t  lortup^se  itt  l^mmta* 


'V^^^MAM^^^kA^^^^^A«^^^M«WM^ 


BRAZIL. 


CTT    A    D  T  1?  O      T 

DI800TBRT  OF  BRAZIL  BT  GABRAL. — OP  RIO  DB  JANBlfiO   Bl 

80D8A. — FRENCH  COLONY. — AGGRESSIONS    OF    THE  DUTCH. — 

THEIR  CONQUESTS. — COUNT  HAURICB  OF  NASSAU. — HIS 

SUCCESSES. — HIS  RECALL. — IMPOLICY  OF  THE  DUTCH. 

— THEIR    EXPULSION    FROK    BRAZIL. 

In  pursuing  their  splendid  career  of  African  and  East  Indian  dis- 
covery, the  Portuguese,  by  chance,  came  upon  a  region  vastly  more 
extensive  and  valuable  than  their  most  coveted  acquisitions  in  the 
opposite  direction.  Alvarez  de  Cabral,  in  1500,  sailing  v^ith  thirteen 
vessels,  on  the  route  to  India,  to  avoid  the  calms  experienced  on  a 
former  voyage,  took  a  course  more  to  the  south-west,  and  accident- 
ally discovered  the  coast  of  Brazil.  On  the  8d  of  May  he  landed, 
in  about  seventeen  degrees  df  south  latitude,  at  a  harbour  which  he 
called  Porto  Seguro,  erected  a  cross,  performed  mass,  took  possession 
of  the  country,  and  named  it  "Terra  Nova  de  la  Vera  Cruz."  The 
natives  appeared  of  a  gentle  and  kindly  disposition,  and  their  com- 
plexion strongly  resembled  that  of  their  visitors.  He  sent  home 
a  vessel,  with  an  account  of  the  discovery,  and  left  on  shore  two 
convicts  to  learn  the  language  of  the  people. 

Expeditions  were  soon  dispatched  from  Portugal  to  the  newly- 
VoT.    TTT_9S 


.!-. 

%- 


854 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


discovered  land,  and  territorial  disputes  with  Spain  were  settled  by 
an  agreement  that  Portugal  should  possess  all  the  counfi-y  between 
{he  two  great  rivers  Amazon  and  La  Plata.  A  dye-wood  of  great 
value  was  soon  discovered,  and  imported  in  quantities  to  Portugal- 
and  from  the  name  of  this  commodity,  (Pao  Brases,  or  wood  of  fire ) 
the  appellation  of  the  territory,  by  degrees,  was  changed  to  Brazil. 
On  the  1st  of  January,  1535,  Martin  Alphonso  de  Sousa,  sailing  to 
this  coast,  discovered  that  splendid  harbour,  called  by  the  natives 
Nitherohy,  and  which,  supposing  it  to  be  the  mouth  of  a  great  river 
he  called  Rio  de  Janeiro — the  River  of  January.  Various  settle- 
ments, however — as  those  of  San  Salvador,  Pernambuco,  St.  Vicente 
and  others — were  founded  before  the  natural  advantages  of  this  ad- 
mirable locality  were  turned  to  account.  A  colony  of  French  Prot- 
estants, dispatched  by  Coligni,  was  planted  in  the  new  country;  but 
the  clergy,  by  their  indiscreet  zeal,  became  embroiled  with  the  Por- 
tuguese, and  their  establishment,  in  1578,  was  attacked  and  broken 
up  by  the  latter. 

The  work  of  settlement  by  the  Portuguese  proceeded  slowly,  but 
uninterruptedly  till  the  year  1626,  when  the  Dutch,  ambitious  of 
inheriting  a  share  in  the  New  World,  established  a  West  India 
Company,  and  dispatched  a  fleet  to  Brazil.  The  intruders  took 
possession  of  its  capital,  San  Salvador,  and  the  surrounding  country. 
War  with  Spain  and  Portugal  immediately  ensued,  and  San  Sal- 
vador was  rScaptured  by  a  powerful  Portuguese  fleet.  In  1630. 
forty-six  Dutch  vessels  arrived  off  Pernambuco,  where  they  landed 
three  thousand  troops.  That  province  and  several  others  were  sub- 
dued and  acquired  by  the  invaders;  and  so  successful  were  they  in 
naval  operations  that,  it  is  said,  during  the  war,  they  captured  five 
hundred  and  forty-seven  ships,  fitted  out  against  them  by  Spain 
together  with  a  treasure  of  forty-five  millions  of  florins. 

In  1636,  John  Maurice,  count  of  Nassau,  with  the  imposing  title 
of  "Governor  of  Brazil  and  South  Am^jrica,"  dispatched  from  IIol. 
land  with  a  large  force,  landed  four  thousand  men  on  the  coast. 
and  defeated  the  Portuguese,  after  an  obstinate  battle,  near  the  for- 
tress of  Porto  Calvo,  which,  with  other  places,  he  soon  afler  took. 
Four  years  afterwards,  a  fleet  of  ninety  ships  was  dispatched  by 
Spain  to  expel  the  Dutch  from  Brazil.  A  desperate  action  with  the 
fleet  of  the  latter,  under  Huygens,  lasting  for  three  days,  ensued;  but 
the  Spaniards  were  at  last  terribly  defeated,  and  being  driven  on  the 
shoals  off  the  coast,  great  numbers  perished  by  shipwreck  and  of 


THK   PORTUGUESE   IN  AMERICA. 


855 


hunger  and  thirst.  Out  of  the  whole  command,  only  five  vessels 
made  their  way  back  to  Spain.  ' 

In  the  same  year  (1640)  Portugal  made  its  revolt  against  the  long- 
continued  domination  of  Spain,  and  John,  duke  of  Braganza,  as- 
cended the  throne.  Count  Maurice,  believing  this  event  to  be  the 
harbinger  of  peace  between  Portugal  and  Holland,  redoubled  his 
exertions  to  extend  his  conquests;  and  before  the  anticipated  treaty 
(peace  in  Europe,  and  a  ten  years'  truce  in  America)  was  accom- 
plished, he  had  taken  valuable  provinces  and  important  strong- 
holds, both  in  Brazil  and  Africa. 

The  acquisitions  to  the  foreign  territory  of  Holland,  effected  by 
this  able  general  and  sagacious  governor,  were  soon  lost  by  the  im- 
policy and  mismanagement  of  his  superiors,  the  Dutch  West  India 
Company.  That  corporation,  by  imposing '  severe  and  »ill-judged 
exactions  on  the  Portuguese  settlers  in  their  conquered  provinces, 
excited  great  discontent;  and  Maurice,  who  remonstrated  against 
this  unjust  and  hazardous  policy,  was  recalled.  With  thirteen  ships- 
of-war,  and  the  greater  part  of  his  forces,  in  1644,  he  left  Brazil.  At 
that  time,  seven  provinces,  thirty  towns,  and  forty-five  fortresses  had 
been  brought  by  his  arms  under  the  rule  of  Holland;  and  besides 
the  native  inhabitants  and  the  soldiers  and  sailors,  there  were  twenty 
thousand  Dutch  citizens  and  sixty  thousand  negro  slaves  in  the 
newly-acquired  territory. 

The  government  of  the  colony  was  next  entrusted  to  a  commission 
of  wrong-headed  citizens,  who,  by  unwise  persistance  in  the  obnox- 
ious measures,  soon  drove  the  Portuguese  to  resistance.  By  the 
connivance  of  the  Portuguese  viceroy,  a  revolt,  headed  by  one  John 
Fernandez  Veira,  a  man  of  obscure  origin,  but  of  talents  and  influ- 
ence, was  commenced,  and  conducted  with  such  skill  and  bravery, 
that  Holland,  despite  her  utmost  exertions,  was  unable  to  lepress  it. 
She  dispatched  fleet  after  fleet  to  the  disputed  territory,  and,  at  vast 
expense  and  loss,  engaged  in  war  with  Portugal ;  yet,  by  the  year 
1655,  her  efforts  all  in  vain,  was  compelled  to  relinquish  t"he  last  of 
her  possessions  in  Brazil  to  the  enemy.  Since  that  time,  the  Portu- 
guese have  remained,  almost  without  dispute,  masters  of  the  immense 
empire  of  Brazil — an  empire  nearly  a  hundred  times  greater  in 
extent  than  the  parent-country,  of  which  it  Was  long  a  colony,  and 
in  our  own  day  erected  into  an  independent  state,  rivalling,  in 
extent  and  capabilities,  at  least,  the  most  powerful  empires  of  the 
Old  World  or  the  New. 


1 


V 
-'4. 


■# 


85(i  TU£   f  KOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOBY. 


BEAZIL   A   PENAL  COLONY, — THE    EB8ULI.  —  OPPRESSION  OP  TBI 
NATIVES. — THE    PEUDAL    STSTEM. — OOTERNOR-OENERAL    AP- 
POINTED.—  STORY   OP    CARAMURD.  —  BAHIA. — THE    JESUITS, 
—  WAR     WITH     THE    CAHETES.  —  MEM     DB     8A.  —  HIS 
CRUSADE   AGAINST   CANNIBALI8K.  —  WAR  WITH  THE 
ATH0RE8. — THEIR  CHARACTERISTICS. 

The  contest  between  the  Dutcli  and  the  Portuguese  for  the  occu- 
patiou  of  Brazil,  and  the  final  ascendency  of  the  latter  having  been 
briefly  sketched,  we  revert  to  the  domestic  condition  of  the  colonies 
first  planted  there  by  the  successful' nation.  At  an  early  day,  con- 
victs and  criminals  were  transported  thither,  who,  by  their  violence 
and  oppression,  exasperated  the  natives,  at  first  kindly  disposed  to 
the  new  comers.  Retaliation  thus  provoked,  the  usual  career  of 
ma8.sacre  and  enslavement  went  rapidly  forward;  the  old  women 
and  children  in  the  villages  they  subdued,  being  butchered  by  the 
Portuguese,  and  the  adults  being  reserved  as  slaves. 

The  sovereign  of  Portugal,  by  a  singular  policy,  first  colonized 
Brazil  on  the  feudal  system,  bestowing  ext(  iisive  copitantas  (captain- 
cies or  provinces)  on  grandees  who  iiad  rendered  services  to  the 
crown.  Thus,  Martin  Alphonso  de  Sousa,  the  discoverer  of  Rio 
Janeiro,  and  Pedro  Lopez,  his  brother,  each  received  allotnrients 
extending  for  fifty  leagues  along  the  coast,  and  similar  spacious 
tracts  were  ceded  to  others.  These  capilanias  were  hereditary,  and 
the  lord  of  each  had  supreme  jurisdiction,  both  civil  and  criminal, 
in  his  extended  domains,  and  made  war  with  the  native  tribes,  is.sued 
laws,  and  exacted  taxes  at  his  pleasure.  The  despotic  exercise  of 
this  authority,  at  length  occasioned  its  resumption  by  the  crown, 
the  lands,  however,  being  left  in  possession  of  the  grantees;  and  a 
governor-general,  Thome  de  Sousa,  in  April,  1549,  accompanied  by 
the  first  Jesuits  who  ever  came  to  America,  landed  in  All  Saints' 
Bay,*  and  assumed  the  general  jurisdiction. 

At  that  place  he  found  an  aged  settler,  named  Diogo  Alvarez, 
who,  in  youth,  having  been  wrecked  there,  and  having  seen  hi.s 
oompanioDS  devoured  by  the  savages,   had  become  a  slave  to  the 

*  Buhia  de  todoit  oit  Santos. 


THE  P0BTUQUE8E   IN    AMEUICA. 


867 


latter.  Ho  had  saved  from  the  wreck  a  musket  and  some  barrels 
of  powder,  and  took  occasion,  by  shooting  a  bird,  to  exhibit  to  his 
masters  the  terrific  power  which  was  lodged  in  those  utensils.  They 
cried  "Caramuru!  Caramurul"  (man  of  fire  I)  and,  filled  with  respect 
for  the  deadly  instrument  and  its  o^fner,  made  him  their  chief  in 
war,  and,  finally,  their  sovereign.  By  his  native  wives  he  had  a 
numerous  family,  and  it  is  said  that  the  best  families  in  Bahia  trace 
their  origin  to  him.  A  French  vessel  coming  into  the  harbour,  he 
loaded  her  with  Brazil-wood,  and  sailed  to  France;  but  not  being 
permitted  to  go  to  Portugal,  returned  to  his  Indian  town  of  Bahia, 
which  he  fortified,  and  where  De  Sousa  found  him.  He  was  of 
great  service  to  the  governor  in  his  dealings  with  the  native  tribes. 

Houses  were  built,  and  a  cathedral  was  begun  at  this,  the  first 
royal  settlement  in  the  country,  fortifications  were  made,  and  the 
new  town  of  Bahia  or  San  Salvador,  was  made  the  capital  of  Brazil. 
The  Jesuits,  with  laudable  zeal,  dispersed  themselves  among  the 
natives,  and  by  the  extraordinary  faculties  of  persuasion  and  perse- 
verance, in  which  they  have  never  been  surpassed  by  any  order  of 
men,  implanted  a  species  of  religion  and  civilization  in  their  breasts, 
withstood  the  oppressions  of  the  colonists,  and  pioneered  the  way  to 
fresh«settlement  and  colonization.  The  disinterested  and  self-sacri- 
ficing eflforts  of  these  much-calumniated  men,  at  that  period,  are 
worthy  of  the  highest  praise. 

The  first  Brazilian  bishop,  appointed  in  1552,  soon  fell  into  a  dis- 
pute with  Da  Costa,  the  successor  of  De  Sousa,  and  embarked  for 
Portugal  to  plead  his  case  before  the  king.  Being  shipwrecked  on 
the  coast,  he  was  murdered,  with  about  a  hundred  others,  by  the 
savage  tribe  of  the  Cahetes — in  revenge  of  which  outrage,  they  and 
their  posterity  were  proscribed,  and  were  hunted  and  butchered  till 
nearly  all  were  exterminated.  In  1558,  the  celebrated  Mem  de  Sa 
succeeded  to  the  viceroyalty,  and  endeavoured  by  all  means  in  his 
power  to  reclaim  the  natives  from  their  barbarous  propensities,  and 
to  protect  them  from  unlawful  oppression.  The  house  of  a  rich 
colonist,  who  had  refused  to  release  certain  of  them,  wrongfully 
enslaved,  was  levelled  to  the  ground  by  the  governor's  order. 

He  took  equally  summary  measures  for  the  suppression  of  canni- 
balism. "Three  friendly  Indians,"  says  Mr.  Southey,*  "  were  seized, 
while  fishing,  by  their  enemies,  carried  off*  and  devoured.  The 
governor  sent  to  the  offending  tribe,  commanding  them  to  give  up 

*  Iliatory  of  Brazil. 


9m 


TUK  rtoli.L':J   1500K0F  UlSTObV 


I 


the  criniK  .m,  iL»t  they  might  be  put  to  death.  The  chiefs  would 
h«ve  uouaeutoti,  but  the  persons  implicated  were  powerful;  thu 
a^^ioiiiiiig  claus  niu(l<  a  common  cause  with  them;  two  hundred 
lu^r'les,  who  dwelt  on  the  banks  of  the  Paraguazu,  tiuited  in  defence 
of  tla  >  favourite  custom ;  and  the  answer  returned  was,  that  if  the 
governor  wanted  the  offenders,  he  must  come  and  take  them.  This 
in  despite  of  the  opposition  made  by  the  settlers,  he  resolved  to  du. 
The  allied  natives  took  the  field  with  them,  with  a  Jesuit  at  their 
heud,  and  with  a  cross  for  a  standard.  Thej  found  the  enemy  well 
'  posted  and  in  considerable  strength,  but  they  put  them  to  flight 
Aflcr  the  battle,  it  was  discovered  that  an  arm  had  been  cutofffni  r 
one  of  the  dead:  as  this  was  evidently  taken  by  one  of  the  allies  :< 
eat  in  secret,  proclamation  was  made  that  the  arm  must  ^ « laii'  1  the 
body  before  the  army  took  food  or  rested  after  the  battle  .  next 

morning  the  enemy  were  pursued,  and  suflered  a  i>  cond  and  mure 
severe  defeat;  after  which,  they  delivered  up  the  criminals,  and  peti- 
tioned to  be  received  as  allies  on  the  same  terms  us  the  other  tribes." 
With  all  these  successes,  much  danger  and  annoyance  was  experi- 
enced from  the  Ay  mores,  a  fierce  and  barbarous  tribe,  wl  o  invaded 
several  of  the  provinces,  and  threatened  San  Salvador  itself.  "Their 
mode  of  warfare,"  says  the  author  just  quoted,  "was  as  savage  as 
their  habits  of  life;  they  had  no  chief  or  leader;  they  never  went  in 
large  companiefi;  '  Uy  never  atoud  up  against  an  enemy  face  to  face 
but  lay  in  wait  like  wild  beasts,  and  took  their  deadly  aim  from  the 
thickets.  In  one  point  they  were  greatly  inferior  to  the  other  tribes* 
for,  being  an  inland  people,  they  could  not  swim,  and  such  was 
their  ignorance  or  dread  of  the  water,  that  any  stream  which  they 
cguld  not  furd  was  considered  a  sufKcient  defence  against  them.  It 
muy  well  be  supposed  that  such  men  would  be  impatient  of  slavery; 
some  who  were  taken  by  the  Portuguese  refused  to  eat,  and  died  by 
thut  slowest  and  most  resolute  mode  of  suicide."  These  ferocious 
and  dangerous  enemies,  by  the  aid  of  the  native  allies,  were  finally 
repulsed;  yet,  it  i-^  said,  but  for  the  i^^-n.-  •-•f  Jready  acquired  by 
the  Jesuits  over  tiic  minds  of  the        '•. '  Portugi  ,  ^  would 

have  been  exterminated  by  the  overwiiCiUiing  number  of  their  ene- 
mies. Mem  dc  So,  after  an  active  and  successful  administration  of 
foorteeu  years,  died  just  at  the  arrival  of  his  successor. 


fill    f.OUTUOUESE   IN   AMERICA. 


369 


CiiiAFxIliH    III, 


BRAZIL  UNOBR  SPANISH   INFLUENOl.        BNQLISH   PlRATrOAL   IX- 

PSDITI0N8. — ODIUM    iV'CUaRBD    BT    TH£    JESUITS  IN    PfiO- 

TBCTINO    TUB     INDIANS. — EEVOLTS.  —  WAE    WITH    THI 

NBORO    NATION,    THB    PALMARESE:    THBIR    flUBDVAL: 

GOLD     AND     DIAMONDS.  —  FRENCH    MOSTH  ITIBS. — 

DBFBAT  OF   DU   CLBRC. — RIO  JANEIRO    TaKBN    BT 

DUOUAT  DB  TROUIN. — TUB  CEUBL  AND  IMPOLITIO 

!  -i  IXPULSIOH    OF    TUB    JESUITS   FROM    BRAZIL. 


Colonization  proceeded  so  rapidly,  that  Brazil  at  one  time  was 
divided  into  two  governments,  and  Kio  dc  Janeiro  was  made  the 
copital  of  all  the  provinces  south  of  Porto  Scguro.  They  were  again 
united  under  a  single  administratioti  in  1578,  he  year  in  which 
King  Sebastian,  with  the  flower  of  his  court  am.  army,  perished  in 
battle  with  the  Moors.  In  consequence  of  that  disastrous  event, 
Portugal  with  her  colonies,  for  sixty  years,  came  inder  the  power 
of  the  Spanish  crown.  Philip  II.  offered  to  the  di  ke  of  Braganza, 
if  he  would  relinquish  his  claim  to  the  throne  of  Pwrtugal,  the  sov- 
ereignty of  Brazil,  but  the  overture  was  rejected,  ^n  consequence 
of  this  change  of  masters,  Brazil  was  exposed  to  the  /lostility  of  the 
English,  and  the  freebooting  expeditions  of  Cavendish,  Lancaster, 
and  others  against  its  coasts,  resulted  in  nr.uch  loss  by  tiratical  spoli- 
ation. The  contest  with  the  Dutch,  and  their  final  expulsion,  have 
been  already  briefly  described.  After  that  event,  John  IV.,  of  Por- 
tugal, conferred  on  his  eldest  son  the  title  of  Prince  >f  Brazil — a 
title  aflerwards  customarily  pertaining  to  the  heir-appai  Mit. 

Despite  the  humane  exertions  of  the  Jesuits,  the  naives,  as  the 
colonies  increased,  were  continually  enslaved  and  perse  itod  till,  in 
the  provinces  on  the  sea-coast,  they  were  nearly  exterm  lated.  So 
great  wius  the  enmity  incurred  by  these  intrepid  and  )enevolent 
men,  in  their  attempts  to  relieve  the  suflerings  of  the  oppressed  race, 
that  an  actual  revolution  was  excited  against  the  governn.ont  which 
protected  them.  The  Paulistus,  a  mixed  breed  of  Portii;_'uese  and 
aborigine."*,  were  inveterate  slave-hunters  and  enemies  of  tl  o  Jesuits, 
and  nearly  .succeeded  in  deposing  the  governor,  who  coui  tenanccd 
that  unpopular  order.    In  1673,  a  revolt  broke  out  in  M..ranliani, 


irtSi 


860 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


headed  by  a  Paulese,  named  Beck  man.  "  Expel  the  Jesuits!  abolish 
monopolies!"  was  the  cry.  The  insurgents  seized  the  town  and  fort 
and  held  them  till  reduced  by  a  superior  force  from  Lisbon. 

A  contest  far  more  dangerous,  about  the  close  of  the  century,  was 
waged  with  a  great  body  of  insurgent  negroes,  in  the  province  of 
Pernambuco.  Some  of  these  had  been  armed  in  the  contest  with 
the  Dutch,  and  had  afterwards  taken  up  a  strong  position  in  the 
woods  west  of  Porto  do  Calvo,  which  all  the  fugitive  negroes  soon 
made  their  rendezvous.  "  Their  numbers  soon  became  formidable. 
Like  the  first  Romans,  they  were  without  women;  but  they  sup- 
plied this  want  by  descending  suddenly  on  the  plantations,  and  car- 
rying oflF  violently  every  woman  of  colour.  They  established  equal 
laws  among  themselves;  they  occupied  a  fertile  boundary;  their 
numbers  increased  with  astonishing  rapidity ;  they  made  no  scruple 
in  plundering  the  Portuguese  settlements;  and  they  finally  consti- 
tuted a  nation  under  the  name  of  the  Palmarese  (from  the  great  palm 
forests  of  their  region).  They  formed  a  government  under  an  elector 
or  monarch,  named  Zombi.  They  surrounded  their  chief  town  and 
villages  with  stockades,  and  managed  to  procure,  even  from  the  Por- 
tuguese planters,  abundance  of  fire  and  other  arms,  and  of  ammuni- 
tion. During  a  period  of  forty  years,  they  remained  unattacked  and 
unmolested;  but  having  increased  to  the  number  of  more  than 
twenty  thousand,  the  Portuguese  government  became  so  thoroughly 
impressed  with  the  formidable  power  of  this  new  nation,  that,  in 
1696,  it  was  determined  to  extirpate  the  Palmarese,  at  whatever  cost 
of  money  or  of  men. 

"John  de  Lancastro,  with  an  army  of  six  thousand  men,  well 
provided  and  armed,  marched  against  the  city  of  the  Palmarese.  The 
latter,  unable  to  meet  the  former  in  the  field,  retired,  to  the  number 
altogether  of  about  ten  thousand,  within  the  defences  of  the  town. 
The  Portuguese  advanced,  and  laid  siege  to  the  place;  but  they  were 
greatly  disheartened  on  beholding  the  formidable  condition  of  the 
defences;  and,  being  without  artillery,  tlicy  were  unprepared  to 
besiege  the  town  in  regular  form.  They  wcro  soon  greatly  hanussed 
by  murderous  sallies  from  the  town.  Whenever  the  Portuguese 
approached,  they  were  dismayed  by  a  furious  resistance  on  the  part 
of  the  negroes;  who,  not  only  with  fire-arms  and  bows  and  arrows, 
but  with  8j)outing  scalding  water,  galled,  and  freqaently  repulsed 
their  jussiiilants. 

"This  wiuj  an  apparently  hopeless  siege  on  the  part  of  the  Porta- 


THE  P0RTU0UE8E  IN    AMERICA. 


tftt 


gucse,  until  tlie  ammunition  of  the  besieged  was  exhausted,  and 
their  supplies  of  provisions  were  cut  off.  Scarcity  was  assuming 
the  aspect  of  famine  within  the  town,  and  a  strong  reinforcement 
having  arrived  in  aid  of  De  Lancastro,  the  place  was  stormed  and 
taken.  The  king,  Zombi,  and  his  chief  adherents,  resolved  not  to 
be  captured  alive,  leaped  over  the  high  rocky  precipices  of  the  fort, 
and  were  instantly  dashed  to  death.  The  captured  inhabitants  were 
all  sold  as  slaves;  and  thus  terminated  the  first  negro  kingdom  in 
America."* 

The  original  wealth  of  this  vast  province  had  consisted  in  its 
inexhaustible  supply  of  dye-woods,  and  not  long  after  its  settlement, 
the  Jews,  banished  from  Portugal  by  the  Inquisition,  introduced  the 
culture  of  the  sugar-cane,  adding  greatly  to  the  wealth  and  resources 
of  the  country.  Gold  was  not  discovered  until  the  close  of  the  sev- 
enteenth century,  nor  the  abundance  of  diamonds  which  the  country 
affords,  until  thirty  years  later.  The  former  discovery  entailed  im- 
mediate misfortune  on  the  province,  both  in  the  check  which  it  gave 
to  agriculture  and  really  productive  industry,  and  in  the  hostile 
cupidity  which  it  excited  among  foreign  powers.  In  1710,  a  French 
squadron,  commanded  by  Du  Clerc,  appeared  off  the  coast,  and 
landed  a  thousand  men  not  far  from  Rio  Janeiro,  which  hitherto  had 
been  free  alike  from  domestic  sedition  and  foreign  violence.  By  an 
artifice  of  the  governor,  De  Castro,  the  hostile  force  was  permitted 
to  enter  tlie  city  without  molestation ;  but  when  they  were  fairly  in 
the  streets,  he  fell  upon  them  with  the  garrison,  killed  and  wounded 
a  great  number,  and  captured  the  rest.  The  unfortunate  Du  Clerc 
and  most  of  his  officers  were  secretly  murdered  in  prison. 

To  avenge  this  defeat  and  outrage,  private  enterprise  supplied  the 
means  for  a  powerful  armament,  which,  under  the  famous  Duguay 
de  Trouin,  on  the  12th  of  September,  1711,  appeared  before  Rio 
Janeiro,  lie  lost  nearly  three  hundred  men  from  the  fire  of  the 
batteries  in  the  harbour;  but  landed  his  troops,  erected  works,  and 
demanded  of  the  governor,  who  had  entrenched  himself  in  the  city, 
an  unconditional  surrender.  The  latter  refusing,  he  opened  a  can- 
nonade on  the  town,  in  the  midst  of  a  tremendous  storm  of  thunder 
and  lightning,  which  combination  of  noises,  says  a  French  author, 
"filled  the  inhabitants  with  terror,  as  though  heaven,  earth,  and  hell 
had  broken  loose  on  them  at  once."  The  citizens  fled  to  the  moun- 
tains; the  Portuguese  troops  evacuated  their  post;  the  captives  of 

♦  McGrciror's  Progress  of  America. 


il 


C62 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  H18T0KY. 


lis 


th 


Du  Clerc's  expedition,  who  yet  survived,  broke  forth  from  prison 
and  the  victors  entered  tumultuoualy,  and  sacked  the  city.  Three- 
fourths  of  the  buildings,  it  is  said,  were  broken  open,  and  their  con- 
tents thrown  into  the  streets,  and  Trouin,  endeavouring  to  stay  the 
work  of  rapine,  caused  numbers  of  his  men  to  be  executed,  but  in 
vain.  A  great  ransom  was  paid  to  save  the  town  from  conflagration  • 
and  besides  the  enormous  loss  from  pillage,  five  ships  of  war  and 
more  than  thirty  merchantmen  were  taken  or  burned  by  the  French. 
On  the  4th  of  November,  Trouin  sailed  from  Rio,  intending  to  attack 
Bahia,  bu'  was  prevented  by  adverse  winds,  and  finally  returned  to 
France.  Two  of  hia  ships,  with  twelve  hundred  men,  and  a  great 
treasure,  foundered  at  sea;  yet  the  proceeds  of  what  remained,  repaid 
the  fitters-out  of  the  enterprise  with  a  profit  nearly  equal  to  their 
capital.  No  hostile  expedition  has^ince  entered  the  harbour  of  Rio 
Janeiro,  which,  in  1768,  was  made  the  seat  of  government  for  Brazil 
in  place  of  Bahia.  •  ■       ><';  '     '■■■>   '       M^ 

After  the  emancipation  of  Portugal  from  the  control  .3pain, 
frequent  disputes  occurred  between  the  two  nations  a&  to  the  bound- 
aries of  their  respective  provinces  in  South  America.  In  1750,  the 
Portuguese  settlement  of  San  Sacramento  was  exchanged  by  treaty 
for  a  number  of  Jesuit  missionary  stations  on  the  Uraguay,  and 
about  thirty  thousand  converts  of  the  Guarany  tribe,  with  their 
families,  were  ordered  to  abandon  thi^ir  homes  and  remove  to  a 
strange  territory. 

The  oppressed  natives  resisted  this  arbitrary  decree,  but  after  great 
slaughter,  were  compelled  to  submit;  though  eleven  years  afterwards 
the  treaty  was  annulled,  .-vnd  the  Guaranies  were  permitted  to  return. 
During  the  enactment  of  this  piece  of  oppression,  the  Jesuits  had 
stood  their  friends,  and  had  endeavoured  to  obtain  reparation  for 
their  wrongs,  and  thus  increased  the  odium  into  which  their  order, 
for  some  time,  had  been  lapsing.  Moreover,  Pombal,  the  minister 
of  Charles  III.  of  Portugal,  a  man  of  great  energy  and  eagerness  for 
reform,  but  equally  short-sighted  and  wrong-headed  in  the  means  he 
adopted,  considering  this  extensive  institution  as  standing  in  the  wav 
of  his  schemes  of  colonial  aggrandizement,  took  the  rash,  unjust,  and 
impolitic  resolution  of  expelling  from  Brazil  a  class  of  men  to  whom, 
more  than  to  any  other,  it  was  indebted  for  safety  in  the  time  of  its 
weakness,  for  friendly  intercourse  with  vasttribesof  theaborigines,  and 
for  the  extension  of  civilization  and  Christianity  among  them,  (1760.) 
His  brother  Fiutado,  a  man  of  similar  stamp,  accomplished  the 


i>. 


TU£  FOBTDGUESE  IN  AMEBICA. 


86S 


work  with  much  severity  and  cruelty.  All  the  churches,  colleges, 
nouses,  and  other  property  of  the  proscribed  order,  were  confiscated 
to  the  use  of  the  crown,  and  great  harshness  was  used  in  the  enforce- 
ment of  this  violent  measure.  The  unfortunate  ecclesiastics,  seized 
and  transported  to  Europe,  almost  like  victims  in  the  hold  of  a  slave- 
ship,  were  thrown  into  prison  at  Lisbon  (where  the  survivors  lan- 
guished for  eighteen  years,  till  the  death  of  the  king  and  the  &11  of 
Fombal)  or  were  landed  in  Italy  without  means  of  support  This 
cruel  and  impolitic  measure,  it  is  said,  tended  greatly  to  the  barbarism 
both  of  the  natives  and  the  Portuguese  colonists.  The  other  schemes 
of  this  arbitrary  minister,  including  oppressive  monopolies,  inflicted 
on  the  colonies,  resulted  in  similar  evU  and  decadence.        ' 

During  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  no  events  of 
material  importance  occurred  in  Brazil,  except  the  transfer  of  the 
capital  to  Bio  Janeiro,  the  extension  of  the  mining  settlements,  some 
expeditions  against  the  Indians,  and  an  unsuccessful  attempt  at  rev- 
olution. In  1801,  Brazil  attacked  the  Spaniards  who  had  posses- 
sion of  the  country  of  the  Guaranies;  those  tribes,  weary  of  the 
tyranny  and  cruelty  of  their  new  masters,  welcomed  their  former 
oppressors,  the  Portuguese,  as  liberators;  and  the  disputed  territory 
was  again  acquired  by  the  latter. 


U.  H  i    1   Si  li     XV. 

PLIGHT  OF  THB  ROYAL  PAMILT  PROM  PORTUGAL  TO  BRAZIL. — 

THE  "CARTA  UEGIA." BRAZIL  OPENED  TO  POREIOX  TRADE 

'and  CIVILIZATION. — BRAZIL  ERECTED  INTO  A  KINGDOM. 
— DOM  JOHN  VI.  —  CORRUPTION    AND    DISCONTEN '. — 
INSURRECTIONS. — RETURN  OF  THE  KING  TO  PORTU- 
GAL.—  TYRANNY  OP  THB  PORTUGUESE  CORTES. — 
IRRITATION  OF  THB  BRAZILIANS. — RESISTANCB 
OF  DOM  PEDRO  AND  HIS  CAPITAL. 

The  extraordinary  events  which,  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  convulsed  the  European  world,  and  which  operated  indi- 
rectly, but  with  still  greater  eventual  effect,  on  the  most  ancient 
provinces  of  America,  were  not  without  their  influence  on  the  vast 


i 


864 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


colony  of  Brazil — a  colony  which,  by  consequence  of  those  events 
was  destined  finally  to  erection  into  an  independent  empire,  vying 
in  its  extent  and  natural  resources,  with  the  greatest  and  most  pow- 
erful states  on  the  globe.  When,  on  the  29th  of  November,  1807 
the  van  of  the  French  army,  under  the  headlong  Junot,  appeared 
on  the  heights  above  Lisbon,  the  prince-regent,  with  the  rest  of  the 
royal  family,  hurriedly  embarked  on  board  a  British  and  Portuguese 
fleet,  taking  all  the  valuables  they  could  hastily  seize;  and  with  a 
great  crowd  of  nobles  and  other  adherents,  put  to  sea,  and  steered 
for  their  distant  province  of  Brazil.  On  the  28th  of  January,  1808 
they  landed  amid  enthusiastic  rejoicing,  at  Bahia,  where  the  prince 
granted" the  celebrated  "Carta  Regia,"  by  which  the  ports  of  Brazil 
were  opened  to  foreign  commerce;  and  thus,  in  the  language  of  the 
official  historian  of  Brazil,  "by  that  immortal  diploma  conferred  an 
inestimable  inheritance  on  this  terrestrial  paradise,  where  flourish 
the  crowned  heads  of  the  vegetable  world;  trees  that  blossom  from 
the  trunk  to  the  vertex ;  health-giving  plants,  that  banish  death  to 
a  remote  old  age ;  and,  besides  a  thousand  other  equivalents  for  the 
riches  of  the  globe,  those  princely  fruits  which  the  poets  and  enthu- 
siasts of  natural  history  have  named  ambrosia — food  for  the  gods  " 
&c.,  &c     In  the  March  following,  he  proceeded  to  Rio  Janeiro. 

This  famous  edict  was  the  signal  for  an  eager  revival  of  commerce 
and  no  less  than  ninety  foreign  ships,  chiefly  British,  in  the  following 
year,  came  into  the  last-named  port,  entrance  to  which  (as  to  all 
others)  had  heretofore  been  interdicted  in  the  severest  manner. 
Civilization  and  improvement  followed  in  the  train  of  free  intercourse 
and  Brazil,  so  long  noted,  even  among  South  American  colonies,  for 
the  slavish  ignorance  of  its  people,  began  to  take  some  steps  in  a 
forward  direction.  In  1815,  it  was  erected  into  a  kingdom  by  the 
royal  family  who  had  there  found  refuge,  and  on  the  5th  of  February, 
1818,  Dom  John  VI.  was  crowned  aa  king  of  the  united  kingdom  of 
Portugal,  Algarves,  and  Brazil.  This  event,  though  considered  by 
the  people  as  an  extraordinary  honour  and  advantage,  was  injurious 
to  the  national  character  by  exciting  an  insane  desire  for  titles  and 
honours,  (which  soon,  by  excessive  multiplication,  lost  their  value,) 
and  by  introducing  all  the  corruptions  of  a  European  court.  Tlie 
inhabitants,  at  first  so  enthusiastically  loyal  as  to  have  placed  their 
lands,  houses,  and  money  at  the  disposal  of  the  royal  suite,  gradually 
lajiscd  into  discontent  at  the  gro.ss  mi«governnient  of  the  favoured 
ofTicials.     About  this  time,  the  warfare  already  mentioned  in  the  last 


THE  POBTUGUESE  IN  XMEBICA. 


S65 


article  was  carried  on  against  Artigas  of  the  Banda  Oriental  and 
against  the  republicans  of  La  Plata.  In  1809,  Portuguese  Guiana, 
which  in  1802,  by  the  treaty  of  Amiens,  had  been  ceded  to  France, 
was  recovered,  by  the  assistance  of  the  English. 

Insurrections  broke  out,  in  1817,  in  Pernambuco  and  Bahia,  and 
after  much  bloodshed,  the  whole  country  appearing  on  the  verge  of 
revolution,  the  king,  in  1821,  appointed  a  commission  to  inquire  into 
the  expediency  of  extending  the  Portuguese  constitution  to  the  Bra- 
zilian government;  and  soon  after,  the  prince,  Dom  Pedro,  read  to 
the  people  of  the  capital  a  royal  proclamation,  assuring  them  of  the 
grant  of  such  a  constitution  as  should  be  formed  by  the  Cortes  of 
Lisbon.  In  the  same  year,  the  king,  by  invitation  from  that  body, 
to  preserve  the  integrity  of  his  dominions,  leaving  his  eldest  son,  Dom 
Pedro,  as  regent  of  Brazil,  visited  the  mother-country,  where  the 
people  were  impatient  at  his  protracted  absence.  Brazilian  deputies 
were  also  summoned  to  attend  the  Cortes;  but  before  they  arrived, 
that  assembly,  with  insane  tyranny,  had  resolved  on  the  revival  of 
the  ancient  colonial  system  in  its  worst  form  of  dependence,  monop- 
oly, and  exclusion  of  foreign  traffic. 

The  prince,  who,  on  assuming  the  regency,  was  only  twenty-three 
years  of  age,  in  'despite  of  his  earnest  attempts  to  reform  the  govern- 
ment, and  the  rigid  self-denial  which  he  practised,  soon  found  his 
authority  set  at  naught  by  the  provinces,  and  was  reduced  to  a  con- 
dition little  better  than  that  of  governor  of  Rio  Janeiro.  Thwarted 
on  every  side,  and  despairing  of  success,  he  had  entreated  to  be  re- 
called to  Europe,  when,  "at  length,"  it  is  said,  "the  Brazilians  were 
disarmed  by  this  noble  conduct;  they  recognized  his  activity,  his 
beneficence,  his  assiduity  in  the  affairs  of  government;  and  the 
habitual  feelings  of  afifeotion  and  respect  for  the  House  of  Braganza, 
which  for  a  moment  had  been  laid  asleep  by  distrust,  were  rea- 
wakened with  increased  strength.  To  these  was  joined  an  almost 
idolatrous  sentiment  of  attachment  for  the  virtues  and  the  splendid 
as  well  as  amiable  qualities  of  the  young  archduchess,  Leopo'dina, 
the  daughter  of  the  emperor  of  Austria,  and  the  beloved  wife  of  the 
regent" 

The  king,  on  his  arrival  in  Portugal,  was  in  a  manner  compelled 
to  sanction  the  illiberal  views  of  the  Cortes  concerning  Brazil.  The 
consequence  was  renewed  disaffection  to  the  parent-country,  and  in 
1821,  an  attempt  was  made  at  Rio  to  proclaim  the  regent  emperor; 
but  this  was  promptly  suppressed,  the  country  in  general  being  un- 


» 


S66 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


prepared  for  a  step  so  decided.  Two  months  afterwards  (December 
iOth)  arrived  a  rash  and  oppressive  decree  of  the  Cortes,  rfiinstatina 
the  old  abuses,  denationalizing  Brazil,  and  rScalling  the  prince  with 
orders  to  travel  incognito  in  Europe.  The  utmost  irritation  was  ex- 
cited by  the  receipt  of  these  tidings,  and  several  provinces  presented 
strong  remonstrances  to  the  prince  against  obedience,  the  municipal- 
ity of  Rio  declaring,  in  their  address,  "The  departure  of  your  Royal 
Highness  from  the  states  of  Brazil  will  be  the  decree  that  will  seal 
for  ever  the  independence  of  this  kingdom,"  implying  the  determin- 
ation, in  that  event,  to  throw  off  the  yoke  of  Portugal.  The  prince 
seeing  the  condition  of  affairs,  and  consulting  his  own  interests,  as 
well  as  those  of  .the  kingdom,  decided  to  remain — a  decision  which 
filled  the  people  with  enthusiastic  joy.  (January  9th,  1822.)  A 
battle  between  the  Portuguese  troops  and  the  citizens  was  only  pre- 
vented by  the  retreat  of  the  former,  who,  however,  waiting  for  rein- 
forcements from  home,  took  up  a  hostile  position  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  bay.  Surrounded  by  the  forces  of  the  prince,  who  man- 
aged the  affair  in  person,  they  were  presently  compelled  to  embark 
for  Europe;  and  a  force  of  eighteen  hundred  men,  which  immedi- 
ately afterwards  appeared  on  the  coast,  dispatched  to  bring  back 
Dom  Pedro,  was  forthwith  ordered  home  again,  without  even  being 
permitted  to  land. 


C  H  A  P  T  E  H    Y . 

IMPOTENT  DEMONSTRATION  OP  THE   PORTUGUESE  GOVERNMENT. — 

DOM    PEDRO    PROCLAIMED    PROTECTOR.  —  INDEPENDENCE   OP 

BRAZIL    DECLARED.  —  PEDRO    PROCLAIMED    EMPEROR. — 

RETREAT   OF   THE   PORTUGUESE  TROOPS. — DIFFICULTIES 

WITH   THE   DEMOCRACY.  —  INSURRECTION    UNDER   CAR- 

VALHO   SUPPRESSED. — POPULAR   REVOLUTION   AT 

RIO.  —  ABDICATION    OF    DOM    PEDRO,    AND    HIS 

RETREAT    TO    PORTUGAL. 

Alarmed  too  late  by  the  determined  attitude  of  the  injured  prov- 
ince, the  Portuguese  government  began  to  withdraw  its  offensive 
measures,  but  in  vain.  Many  of  the  captaincies  gave  in  their  adhe- 
sion to  the  revolutionary  cause,  and  all  the  southern  departments, 


THE  PORTUGUESE  IN   AMERICA. 


867 


forming  a  majority  of  the  whole,  assumed  the  title  of  "The  Allied 
Provinces."  On  the  18th  of  May,  1822,  at  Rio  Janeiro,  Prince 
Pedro  was  proclaimed  by  the  people,  "  Perpetual  Protector  of  Brazil," 
as  an  hereditary  title;  and  whereas  they  would  formerly  have  been 
i^atisfied  with  free  trade  and  a  moderate  share  of  representative  and 
domestic  right  of  government,  they  now  resolved  on  having  a  sepa- 
rate legislature,  and  no  union  with  Portugal,  except  that  afforded 
by  the  crown.  In  reply  to  the  assertion  of  these  rights,  the  Cortes, 
in  September,  fulminated  a  sounding  decree  against  all  concerned  in 
the  new  order  of  things;  nevertheless,  a  general  assembly,  convoked 
by  the  prince,  met  in  the  following  year,  and  transformed  the  regency 
into  an  imperial  government;  and  the  authority  of  the  prince  was 
implicitly  obeyed  on  all  hands. 

A  squadron  from  Portugal,  with  all  the  troops  which  that  feeble 
nation  could  muster,  arrived  at  Bahia,  and  occupied  the  town ;  but 
so  complete  was  the  popular  disaffection  to  the  old  rule,  that  the 
authority  of  the  commander,  Madeira,  was  not  extended  beyond  the 
/imit  of  the  walls.  A  fresh  angry  and  impotent  decree  of  the  Cortes 
now  menaced  Dom  Pedro  with  exclusion  from  the  throne,  and  pro- 
claimed a  paper  blockade  of  the  whole  Brazilian  coast  The  prince, 
on  his  part,  by  manifesto,  accused  the  Cortes  of  tyranny  and  usurpa- 
tion, anil  formally  proclaimed  to  foreign  nations  the  independence 
of  Brazil — declaring,  however,  that  he  regarded  the  durance  in  which 
his  august  father  was  held  in  Portugal,  as  only  temporarily  sus- 
pending his  authority,  and  expressing  his  hope  that  a  single  mon- 
arcliy  would  yet  unite  the  two  nations.     (August  6th,  1822.) 

The  popular  mind  appearing  ripe  for  such  a  measure,  the  muni- 
cipal senate  of  Rio  declared  that,  on  the  12th  of  October,  the 
prince  would  be  formally  proclaimed  as  constitutional  emperor ;  and, 
accordingly,  on  that  day,  in  a  number  of  the  provinces  his  accession 
was  publicly  announced.  On  the  1st  of  December  following,  his 
coronation  as  Pedro  I.,  emperor  of  Brazil,  was  solemnized,  and  he 
took  oath  to  defend  the  constitution,  (as  yet  unframed,)  provided  it 
should  be  worthy  of  Brazil  and  of  him.  No  increase  of  power  or 
revenue  attended  this  elevation  to  the  imperial  dignity,  lie  forth- 
with summoned  a  constituent  assembly,  to  meet  at  Rio  Jeneiro  on 
the  3d  of  May,  (1823,)  the  anniversary  of  the  discovery  of  the  coun- 
try by  Cabral. 

Meanwhile,  the  Portuguese  force  at  Bahia  was  surrounded  by 
twenty  thousand  Brazilian  troops,  and  the  officers  decided  on  retreat 


''I 


368 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HI8T0BY. 


from  the  country.  Accordingly,  having  pillaged  the  city,  and  strip. 
ped  the  churches  of  their  gold  and  silver  ornaments,  the  whole  com- 
mand, on  the  2d  of  July,  embarked  on  board  of  eighty  vessels,  and 
set  sail.  Owing  to  the  width  of  the  bay,  and  the  favourable  wind 
the  Brazilian  fleet,  of  sixty  ships,  under  Lord  Cochrane,  was  unable  to 
intercept  them,  though  sailing  in  pursuit,  it  captured  several  vessels. 
The  imperial  army  entered  the  city  and  proclaimed  Dom  Pedro. 

The  government,  installed  with  such  general  satisfaction,  was  not 
long  in  encountering  difficulties  from  the  more  democratic  element 
in  Brazilian  politics;  and  the  absolute  veto,  the  strongest  safeguard 
of  the  imperial  power,  was  refused  by  a  majority  of  the  assembly. 
The  emperor,  in  reply,  declared  his  intention  of  practically  enforcing 
the  disputed  point,  and  issued  a  proclamation,  avowing  his  abhor- 
rence of  despotism,  whether  that  of  one  or  of  many.  This  position 
of  the  new  sovereign  was  sustained  by  the  army,  the  navy,  and  a 
majority  of  the  people.  In  November,  debate  in  the  assembly  be- 
came so  stormy,  and,  it  was  declared,  showed  such  tendencies  to 
anarchy,  that  a  body  of  troops  was  dispatched  by  the  government 
to  dissolve  the  sitting  by  violence.  This  was  done,  and  several  of 
the  members  were  arrested,  while  Dom  Pedro,  in  the  midst  of  general 
acclamation,  rode  through  the  city.  He  published  a  proclamation 
promising  to  provide  a  constitution  worthy  of  the  nation  and  of 
nimself.  The  draft  of  such  an  instrument  was  circulated  through 
the  empire,  and  a  legislative  assembly  was  summoned. 

In  Pernambuco,  the  revolutionary  spirit  assumed  a  more  formida- 
ble aspect.  A  plan  to  erect  a  republican  government  there,  with  a 
young  man,  named  Carvalho  Paes,  as  president,  was  temporarily 
suppressed  by  the  imperial  forces;  but  the  troops,  revolting,  rein- 
stated him  in  the  office,  and  for  a  time  his  administration  paid  an 
assumed  deference  to  the  imperial  government.  But,  taking  advan- 
tage of  a  proclamation  of  the  emperor's,  that  he  was  unable  to  guard 
the  coast  against  Portugal,  the  president  and  his  partisans  proclaimed 
the  latter  a  traitor  leagued  with  the  Portuguese,  and  called  on  the 
provinces  of  the  north  to  form  a  republic,  to  be  entitled  "The  Con- 
federation of  the  Equator."  Many  gave  in  their  adherence  to  this 
scheme,  but  the  movement  was  not  general,  and  a  partisan  warfare 
was  commenced  by  the  republican  and  imperial  factions.  To  sup- 
press this  revolt,  a  squadron,  under  Lord  Cochrane,  carrying  twelve 
hundred  men,  commanded  by  De  Lima,  was  dispatched  to  the  dis- 
tracted district.     The  undisciplined  forces  of  the  republicans  were 


THK  I'OUTUGUKSE  IN  AMERICA. 


369 


vanquished,  and  Carvalho  was  compelled  to  flee,  for  a  li'ne,  from 
the  country. 

On  the  24th  of  October,  1824,  the  emperor  having  granted  a  con- 
stitutional charter,  took  oath  in  public  to  observe  it,  and  it  was 
sworn  to  throughout  the  empire  as  the  definitive  settlement  of  the 
government.  During  his  reign  as  emperor,  which  lasted  for  about 
ten  years,  Brazil  made  greater  advances  toward  civilization  than  it 
had  done  during  three  hundred  years  of  colonial  rule.  But  from 
neglecting  to  conciliate  popular  feeling,  and  to  identify  himself  suffi- 
ciently with  the  Brazilian  nation,  disaffection  to  his  person,  and  a 
native  jealousy  of  foreign  influence,  became  at  last  generally  excited. 
On  the  6th  of  April,  1831,  the  people  of  Rio  Janeiro  assembled,  and 
demanded  the  dismissal  of  certain  ministers  who  had  been  newly 
appointed  to  office,  and  the  reinstatement  of  others  just  dismissed. 
During  the  whole  day  this  civic  tumult  increased ;  but  the  emperor 
obstinately  refused  compliance  with  the  popular  demand.  '*  I  will  do 
every  thing />r  the  people,"  he  said,  "but  nothing  hy  the  people." 

This  speech,  reported  to  the  meeting,  increased  the  general  agita- 
tion, and  the  troops  began  to  side  with  the  people.  The  "  emperor's 
battalion,"  and  the  imperial  guard  of  honour,  even,  took  this  course, 
and  the  multitude  was  speedily  supplied  with  arms  from  the  bar- 
racks. "The  emperor,  in  these  trying  moments,  is  said  to  have 
evinced  a  dignity  and  magnanimity  unknown  in  the  days  of  his 
prosperity.  On  the  one  hand,  the  empress  was  weeping  bitterly, 
and  apprehending  the  most  fatal  consequences;  on  the  other,  an 
envoy  from  the  combined  assemblage  of  the  troops  and  populace  was 
urging  him  to  a  final  answer.  Deserted,  harassed,  irritated,  and 
fatigued  beyond  measure,  he  at  length  found  it  necessary  to  yield 
to  circumstances."  At  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  without  even 
announcing  his  intention  to  his  ministers,  he  took  a  pen,  and,  in  as 
few  words  as  possible,  abdicated  the  throne  in  favour  of  his  infant 
son,  Dom  Pedro  de  Alcantara.  "Here,"  he  said  to  the  messenger, 
"is  my  abdication.  May  you  be  happy  I  I  shall  retire  to  Europe, 
and  leave  the  country  that  I  have  loved  dearly  and  that  I  still  love." 
Ilaving  uttered  these  words,  unquestionably  true,  he  retired  in  tears, 
and  after  arranging  his  domestic  affairs,  with  the  empress  and  his 
eldest  daughter,  went  aboard  an  English  man-of  war,  which  lay  in 
the  harbour.  Soon  after,  he  returned  to  Europe,  where,  by  British 
assistance,  he  succeeded  in  wresting  from  his  brother,  Dom  Miguel, 
the  crown  of  Portugal. 
Vol.  III.— 24 


,*: 


;  iJi&t 


870 


THE  FSOl'LE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOBY. 


CTJAD*T'X''D      IT  T 


THE    CHILD    DOlf    PEDRO    II. — THE    TRIPLE    REOE}<CY — THE 

REOENCT    OP    FBIJO;    OP    LIMA.  —  PRESH    RETOLUTION. — THE 

MAJORITY   OF   THE   EMPEROR   PROCLAIMED. — POPULAR 

TROUBLES    RENEWED:    DISASTROUS  RESULT. — THE 

BOTAL     MARRIAGES. — CAPABILITIES    AND 

NECESSITIES    OP     BRAZIL. 


In  tbe  Campo  de  Santa  Anna,  where  the  popular  aasembly  was 
still  in  full  agitation,  the  news  of  the  abdication  was  received  with 
enthusiastic  joy,  and  with  shouts  of  "Long  livo  Dom  Pedro  II. I" 
and  the  little  prince,  (only  six  years  old,)  in  wbcsi  favour  the  instru- 
meat  had  been  drawn,  was  borne  in  triumph  thrcugh  the  city,  and 
received  an  enthusiastic  acclamation  as  emperor.  On  the  9th  of 
April,  a  grand  court-day  was  held  for  the  little  sovereign,  Dom 
Pedro  11.,  whose  accession  was  celebrated  with  much  display  and 
appearance  of  loyalty.  A  provisional  regency,  on  the  morning  of 
the  abdication,  had  Ixien  provided  by  the  deputies  and  senators,  with 
the  late  ministers  of  state,  and  Ou  the  17lh,  the  general  assembly 
elected,  as  a  permanent  regency,  J  tma,  Costa  Carvalho,  and  Joao 
Muniz.  These  important  political  changes  were  effected  with  re- 
markable order  and  tranquillity.  In  1834,  however,  a  law  was 
passed,  vesting  the  regency  in  the  hands  of  a  single  person,  to  be 
elected  for  four  years;  and  Diogo  Feijo,  a  bishop  and  a  senator, 
accordingly,  on  the  12th  of  October,  1835,  was  installed  as  sole 
regent.  His  administration  was  troubled  with  insurrections  in  Per- 
nambuco,  Rio  Grande,  and  Para — the  president  of  the  latter  place 
being  assassinated,  and  the  Portuguese  there  indiscriminately  mur- 
dered. The  assembly  was  slow  in  supporting  his  authority,  and, 
disheartened  by  these  obstacles,  in  September,  1837,  he  resigned  the 
regency.  In  October  of  the  following  year,  Pedro  Lima,  already,  by 
a  clau.seof  the  constitution,  provisionally  regent,  was  confirmed  in 
that  office  by  election. 

Weary  of  his  authority,  a  party  of  the  assembly,  in  July,  1840, 
began  to  agitate  the  question  of  declaring  the  youngemperor  of  age, 
and  committing  the  imperial  authority  into  his  own  hand.s.  Furiou.s 
debate  and  great  agitation  ensued,  and  the  citizen.^,  eager,  as  usual, 


THE  P0ETUGUE8E   IN    AMEHICA. 


871 


to  have  a  hand  in  any  political  revolution,  assembled  in  crowds,  and 
demanded,  with  their  accustomed  impetuosity,  that  the  young  em- 
peror's majority  should  be  immediately  proclaimed.  A  committee 
y/aa  appointed  on  the  question,  and  the  regent,  by  attempting  to 
prorogue  the  assembly,  inflamed  the  passions  of  the  opposition  to 
madiieas.  The  prorogation  was  disregarded,  and  the  senate  and 
deputies,  in  joint  session,  appointed  a  deputation  to  wait  on  the  em- 
peror, and  obtain  his  consent  to  an  immediate  proclamation.  To 
the  intense  delight  and  enthusiasm  of  the  people,  he  consented,  and 
ordered  the  regent  to  revoke  his  obnoxious  decree,  and  to  declare 
the  assembly  in  session. 

The  next  morning,  (July  23d,  1840,)  the  senate-house  was  sur- 
rounded by  an  assemblage  of  eight  or  ten  thousand  respectable  cit- 
izens, and  while  Dom  Pedro  II.  was  formally  proclaimed  within,  as 
being  of  full  age,  and  constitutional  emperor  of  Brazil,  the  approving 
uhouts  of  the  multitude  without,  attested  the  popularity  of  the  mea- 
sure. At  the  approach  of  the  sovereign,  this  enthusiasm  increased 
bevond  bounds,  and  continual  vivas  rent  the  air.  He  took  oalli 
before  the  two  houses  to  support  the  constitution  and  the  Catholic 
religion,  and  a  proclamation  was  issued,  announcing  his  accessioii. 
The  city  was  brilliantly  illuminated,  and  the  greatest  rejoicing  and 
festivity  prevailed.  In  this  sudden  and  comparatively  tranquil  man- 
ner, was  a  youth  of  fourteen  and  a  half  elevated  to  the  imperial 
throne  of  Brazil,  llis  coronation  was  celebrated  with  great  pomp 
and  s|)lendour,  in  July  of  the  ensuing  year. 

The  main  trouble  of  the  new  government,  was  the  inveterate  re- 
bellion in  Rio  Grande  do  Sul,  where  the  malcontents  obstinately 
rejected  all  overtures  for  conciliation.  A  change  of  ministers  (occii- 
sioned  by  the  treatment  of  this  perplexing  matter)  was  again  made, 
and  fresh  disturbances  arose  in  the  empire,  consequent  on  a  dis- 
puted general  election.  In  San  Paulo  and  other  provinces,  formida- 
ble revolts  occurred,  and  in  Rio,  i.t  was  said,  plans  for  a  revolution 
were  concerted,  a  proclamation  being  posted  at  the  street  corners, 
calling  on  the  people  "to  free  the  emperor  from  the  domination 
which  had  been  imposed  upon  him,  and  to  rescue  both  the  throne 
and  the  constitution  from  threatened  annihilation."  The  ministry 
issued  a  proclamation,  signed  by  the  emperor,  that  the  supremacy  oi 
the  laws  should  be  maintained  at  all  hazards,  and  martial  law  was 
proclaimed  in  the  revolted  districts.  Many  persons  in  he  capital 
were  arrested  on  suspicion,  and  banished  without  trial.     The  author 


III 


I 


872 


THE  PEOPLE'S  HOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


ity  of  the  government  wa«  at  lost  rt'assortcd,  but  with  tho  loss  of 
many  lives,  and  great  damage  to  the  public  credit  and  revenue. 

In  18-12,  a  contract  of  marriage  had  been  made  between  the  young 
emperor  and  the  Princess  Theresa,  sister  of  the  king  of  the  two 
Sicilies,  and  on  the  8d  of  September  of  the  following  year,  a  Brazilian 
squadron  brought  her  to  Rio  Janeiro.  In  the  spring  preceding  this 
last  event,  the  Prince  de  Joinville,  arriving  in  command  of  a  French 
squadron,  had  married  and  taken  to  Europe  the  Princess  Francisco, 
sister  of  the  emperor.  The  next  year,  the  Princess  Januaria,  another 
sister,  was  married  to  the  count  of  Aquila,  brother  of  the  empress;  the 
imperial  house  of  Brazil  thus  being  strengthened,  as  it  was  coiiHid- 
cred,  by  three  alliances,  within  a  year,  with  tho  royal  families  of 
Europe. 

"There  is  no  part  of  the  habitable  globe,"  says  Mr.  McGregor,* 
"which  possesses  a  greater  variety  of,  or  more  splendidly  munificent 
resources  than  the  empire  of  Brazil — an  empire  in  its  areajis  large 
OS  seventy-seven  kingdoms  of  the  same  area  with  Portugal,  and 
nearly  as  extensive  as  all  Europe.  If  we  estimate  ita  soil,  climate 
and  water-courses,  Brazil  appears  capable  of  being  rendered,  proba- 
bly three-fold,  more  productive  than  all  the  regions  from  the  Atlan- 
tic to  the  Oural  mountains,  from  tho  Mediterranean  to  the  Arctic 
This  empire,  however,  does  not  possess  in  its  population  (which 


sea. 


is  little,  if  any,  more  in  number  than  the  inhabitants  of  Belgium)  the 
power  of  becoming  great,  wealthy,  or  jKJwerful,  for  a  long  period  to 
come;  unless  every  facility  and  security  be  afforded  to  the  immigra- 
tion of  industrious  Europeans,  or  of  the  citizens  of  tho  United  States 
of  North  America; — unless  the  utmost  security  is  guaranteed  to  per- 
son and  property; — unless  the  prejudices  against  the  persons  ami  the 
religion  of  foreigners  be  forgotten; — unless  the  bigoted  attachment 
of  the  Brazilians  for  hereditary  customs,  and  for  a  make-shift  system 
of  agriculture  and  handicrail-trades,  be  supplanted  by  intelligence, 
industry,  and  enterprise; — and  unless  the  trade  and  navigation. of 
every  part  and  port  of  Brazil  is  relieved  from  restrictive  commercial 
laws,  and  from  high  duties  on  commodities.  Then,  and  not  till 
then,  can  they  advance  in  that  path  of  wealth,  greatness,  and  power, 
of  which  they  have  so  marvellous  an  example  in  Anglo-Saxon 
North  America." 

*  "ProgreM  of  America"— An  able  and  elaborate  work  of  American  atatistics,  to 
which  th«  writer,  in  preparing  this  artivie,  has  been  chiefly  indebted. 


PART  IV. 


«MAMAAAMM^«^««M«M^ 


^t  Jtttt^  itt  l^mmta. 


<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^/%»^^^^^wM^^^^^»^^^A^^^ 


THE  NEW  NETHERLANDS. 


CXI   A   D  T  T  O     T 
jtl  lit  Z   J>   Xi  ti     l» 

CAPTAIN   HKNRT   HUDSON. HIS  V0TA0E8   IN    8K^RCH    OP    A 

HORTHKRI.Y  PA88A0B  TO  CHINA.  —  EMPLOYED  BY  THE  DUTCH 

BAST  INDIA   COMPANY. SAILS    IN    THE    HALF-MOON. 

CRUISES  ALONG  THE  AMERICAN  COAST   IN   SEARCH   OP 

A  NORTH-WEST  PASSAGE.  —  DISCOVERS  AND  ASCENDS 

THEHDDSON  RIVER. DEALINGS  WITH  THBINDIANS. 

The  arduous  endeavours  of  Holland  to  gain  a  footing  in  the 
wealthy  regions  of  Brazil,  her  protracted  struggle  with  Portugal  and 
Spain,  and  the  final  expulsion  of  her  colonists  from  the  disputed 
territory,  have  been  described  in  the  preceding  article.  Her  more 
peaceful  and  successful  enterprise  of  planting  a  colony  on  the  shores 
of  North  America,  and  her  brief  tenure  of  the  moat  valuable 
region,  for  its  extent,  in  the  United  States,  may  be  detailed  within 
moderate  limits. 

Captain  Henry  Hudson,  a  Londoner,  was  one  of  the  boldest  and 
most  skilful  navigators  of  his  day.  His  attempts  to  reach  India  by 
a  northerly  passage,  considering  the  insignificance  of  his  means,  are 
aiiiong  ihe  very  grandest  and  hardiest  exploits  in  tlie  way  of  dis- 
Cdv  TV  tliat  have  ever  been  undertaken.     On  the  Ist  of  May,  1607, 


<U|4 


i^l 


S74 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOUY. 


being  employed,  as  he  says,  "by  certaine  worshipfull  mercbunta  of 
London  for  to  discover  a  passage  by  the  North  Pole  to  Japan  and 
China,"  with  only  ten  men  and  his  little  son,  he  sailed  in  a  small 
vessel  frona  Gravesend.  On  the  13th  of  June,  he  made  the  coast  of 
Greenland,  which  he  explored  for  a  considerable  distance,  and  thence 
proceeded  to  Spitzbergen,  where,  in  seventy-eight  degrees  north  lat- 
itude, entangled  among  huge  masses  of  ice,  for  a  long  time,  he  vainly 
endeavoured  to  force  his  way  northward.  He  attained  a  latitude  of 
eighty-two  degrees,  surpassing  any  one  who  had  preceded  him,  and 
rivalling  the  most  successful  expeditions  of  modern  times.  Finding 
it  impossible  to  proceed  in  the  desired  direction,  he  made  an  equally 
futile  attempt  to  pass  to  the  north  of  Greenland,  and  in  September 
returned  to  the  Thames.  In  the  following  year,  with  a  like  slender 
company,  on  the  22d  of  April,  he  renewed  the  attempt,  trying  to 
pass  to  the  north  of  Nova  Zembla ;  but  after  displaying  much  forti- 
tude and  perseverance,  was  compelled  to  relinquish  the  design,  and 
at  the  close  of  summer  to  return  to  England.  The  "  worshipfull 
merchants,"  discouraged  by  these  failures,  refused  to  fit  out  any  more 
expeditions,  even  of  the  insufficient  kind  they  had  already  vouchsafed 
to  him. 

Undismayed  either  by  disappointment  or  neglect,  "the  bold  Eng- 
lishman,"  (as  he  was  called,)  betook  himself  to  Ilolland,  where  his 
reputation  had  preceded  him,  and  sought  employment  from  the 
Dutch  East  India  Company.  That  ambitious  corporation,  eager  to 
extend  its  trafTic  and  gain  a  footing  in  the  east,  furnished  him  with 
a  little  vessel,  called  the  Half- Moon,  and  a  crew  of  twenty  men,  with 
which,  on  the  25th 'of  March,  1609,  he  again  sailed  on  the  expected 
track  to  India  through  the  Arctic  sea.  Opposed  by  continual  gales, 
fogs,  and  ice,  he  finally  steered  in  a  westerly  direction,  and  on  the 
2d  of  July,  reached  the  bank  of  Newfoundland.  Keeping  on  along 
the  coast,  he  soon -after  entered  Penobscot  bay.  Here  he  cut  down 
a  tree  and  replaced  his  foremast,  which  had  been  carried  away  in  a 
storm,  and  traded  with  the  Indians  for  furs.  Despite  the  friendly 
demeanour  of  the  latter,  the  whites,  conceiving  a  vague  suspicion  of 
treachery,  at  their  departure,  committed  an  act  of  brutal  spoliation 
on  their  unfortunate  hosts.  "In  the  morning,"  says  Juet,  who  kept 
the  log,  "wee  manned  our  scute  with  four  Muskets  and  six  men,  and 
took  one  of  their  Shallops,"  (canoes),  "and  brought  it  aboord.  Then 
we  manned  our  boat  and  scute  with  twelve  men  p.  1  Mu.sket!-,  and 
two  Stone  Peeces  or  Murderers,"  (very  apj)ropriately),  "and  dravo 


THE  DUTCH  IN   AMERICA. 


875 


the  Salvages  from  their  houses,  and  took  the  spoyle  of  them,  as  they 
would  have  done  of  vs." 

Hudson  had  been  informed  by  his  friend,  the  famous  Captain  John 
Smith,  that  a  little  south  of  Virginia  he  would  probably  find  a  pass- 
age to  the  Indies  1  and  accordingly  he  kept  southward  along  the 
coast.  On  Cape  Cod  he  found  "goodly  grapes  and  rose  trees,"  and 
a  friendly,  confiding  people.  About  the  middle  of  August  he  arrived 
off  Chesapeake  Bay,  where  Smith,  at  this  time,  was  engaged  in  the 
memorable  foundation  of  the  first  English  settlement  in  America; 
but,  on  account  of  contrary  winds,  passed  vv '  Ibout  entering.  Having 
proceeded  as  far  south  as  thirty-six  degrees  north  latitude,  and  seeing 
no  indication  of  a  passage  to  the  Pacific,  he  turned  northward,  and 
discovered  Delaware  bay.  Keeping  on  this  course,  on  the  2d  of 
September,  he  came  to  the  Highlands  of  Neversink,  since  the  chief 
landmark  of  commerce  in  the  Western  Continent — "  a  good  land  to 
fall  with,  and  a  pleasant  land  to  see,"  says  the  journal — "a  sentiment 
echoed  in  succeeding  centuries,  by  many  an  anxious  and  sea-worn 
mariner."  He  rounded  Sandy  Hook,  and  came  to  anchor  in  what  is 
now  known  as  the  Lower  Bay  of  New  York. 

The  Indians,  friendly  in  their  demeanour,  thronged  around  the 
vessel  in  their  canoes,  bringing  tobacco,  which  they  exchanged  for 
knives  and  beads.  A  party  sent  up  the  bay  to  explore,  declared 
that  "the  Lands  vrere  as  pleasant  with  Grasse  and  Flowers  and  goodly 
Trees,  as  ever  they  had  scene,  and  very  sweet  smells  came  from  them." 
As  they  returned  in  the  evening,  they  were  attacked  by  two  canoes 
filled  with  Indians,  twenty-six  in  all;  two  of  their  number  were 
wounded,  and  one  slain  outright  by  an  arrow  in  the  throat.  The 
next  day  the  natives  came  alongside  as  usual,  and  Hudson,  detaining 
two  of  them  as  hostages,  weighed  anchor,  and  on  the  11th  of  Sep- 
tember, passed  the  Narrows,  and  entered  New  York  harbour.  "On 
his  right  was  the  lovely  island  of  Mannahata,  now  the  site  of  the 
fairest  city  in  the  New  World;  and  before  him  lay  invitingly  the 
beautiful  and  majestic  river  which  still  bears  his  name.  For  many 
leagues  it  is  rather  an  estuary  than  a  stream,  and  it  is  said  that  he 
was  cheered  with  the  bt-lief  that  it  would  prove  to  be  the  long-sought 
passage  to  India."  On  the  12th  he  stood  up  the  river,  trading  with 
the  Indians,  and  by  the  evening  of  the  second  day  had  ascended  to 
the  Highlands.  Here  his  two  hostages,  whom  he  had  arrayed  in 
red  coats,  made  their  escape  and  swam  to  shore. 

Anchorintr.  on  the  cveuinjr  of  the  loth,  somewhere  near  the  base 


I 


376 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY 


of  the  Cattakills,  he  found  "  very  loving  people,  and  very  old  men  " 
and  was  kindly  entreated.  The  Indians  brought  corn,  furs,  tobacco 
grapes,  and  pumpkins  for  exchange,  and  traffic  was  briskly  carried 
on  along  the  river.  Some  way  further  up,  "our  Master's  Mate" 
says  the  journal,  "went  on  land  with  an  olde  Sauage,  a  Gouernour 
of  the  Countrey ;  who  carried  him  to  his  house,  and  made  him  good 
cheere.  «  *  »  Our  Master"  (Hudson)  "and  his  Mate" 
proceeds  the  narrative,  "determined  to  trie  some  of  the  chiefe  men 
of  the  Countrey,  whether  they  had  any  treacherie  in  them.  So  they 
tooke  them  down  into  the  Cabbin,  and  gaue  them  so  much.  Wine  and 
Aqua  VitoB  that  they  were  all  merrie;  and  one  of  them  had  hia  wife 
with  him,  which  sate  so  modestly  as  any  of  our  Countrey  women 
would  doe  in  a  strange  place.  In  the  end  one  of  them  was  drunke," 
&c.,  &c.,  but  nothing  transpired  to  confirm  the  suspicion  with  which 
Hudson  seems  continually  to  have  regarded  the  natives.  Affrighted 
at  the  apparent  death  of  their  companion,  the  chiefs  went  on  shore, 
but  the  next  day,  seeing  him  alive,  "came  abord,"  says  the  journal, 
•'  and  brought  tobacco  and  more  Beades,  and  gave  them  to  our  Master, 
aud  made  an  Oration,  and  showed  him  all  the  Countrey  round  about. 
Then  they  sent  one  of  their  Company  on  land,  who  presently  returned, 
and  brought  a  great  platter  full  of  venison,  dressed  by  themselves, 
and  they  caused  him  to  eate  with  them.  Then  they  made  him  rev- 
erence and  departed." 


vj    iLX    iLit    X^     X    ilj   Jill      X    X  • 

HUDSON. TDRNS  HOMEWARD. — MURDEROUS  H0STIIITIE8  WITH 
THE  INDIANS.  —  HIS  RETURN  TO  ENGLAND.  —  HIS  LAST  VOY- 
AGE AND  DISCOVERT.  —  SUFFERINGS   DURING   THE  WIN- 
TER.—  HENRY  GREEN.  —  MUTINY  OF  THE  CREW. — HUD- 
SON AND  OTHERS  SET  ADRIFT  TO  PERISH. 


After  ascending  the  river  in  the  Ilalf-Moon  for  about  an  hundred 
and  fifty  miles,  and  exploring  the  contracted  channel  with  his  boats 
some  distance  further,  Hudson  began  to  perceive  tliat  the  track  to 
India  was  yet  undiscovered;  and  accordingly  he  turned  his  prow 
houtiiward.  and  beat  slowlv  down  the  stream. 


THE  DUTCH  IN  AMEEICA. 


877 


aboard,  one  of  whom,  says  the  journal,  "brought  more  Beades,  and 
gaue  them  to  our  Master,  and  showed  him  all  the  Countrey  there 
about,  as  though  it  were  at  his  command.  So  he  made  the  two  old 
men  dine  with  him  and  the  old  man's  wife;  for  they  brought  two 
old  women  and  two  yong  maidens  of  the  age  of  sixteene  or  seven teene 
yeeres  with  them,  who  behaved  themselves  very  modestly." 

The  intercourse  with  the  natives  of  the  river,  heretofore  so  friendly 
and  agreeable,  was  soon  converted,  by  a  cruel  and  violent  deed,  into 
deadly  warfare.  On  the  Ist  of  October,  just  below  the  Highlands, 
the  Half-Moon  came  to  an  anchor.  "  The  people  of  the  Mountaynes," 
says  the  narrative,  "came  aboord  vs,  wondring  at  our  ship  and 
weapons.  We  bought  some  small  Skinnes  of  them  for  Trifles.  This 
afternooue,  one  Canoe  kept  hanging  vnder  our  sterne  with  one  man 
in  it,  which  we  could  not  keepe  from  thence,  who  got  vp  by  our 
Budder  to  the  Cabin  window,  and  stole  out  my  Pillow  and  two  Shirts, 
and  two  Bandaleeres.  Our  Master's  Mate  shot  at  him  and  strooke 
him  on  the  breast  and  killed  him.  Whereupon  all  the  rest  fled 
away,  some  in  their  Canoes  and  so  leapt  out  of  them  into  the  water. 
We  manned  our  Boat  and  got  our  things  againe.  Then  one  of  them 
that  swamme  got  hold  of  our  Boat,  thinking  to  ouerthrow  it.  But 
our  Cooke  tooke  a  Sword,  and  cut  off  one  of  his  hands  and  he  was 
drowned."  The  next  day,  seven  leagues  further  down,  hostilities 
were  renewed.  Many  savages  appeared,  and  would  fain  have  come 
aboard :  "  but  wee  perceived  their  intent,  and  suffered  none  of  them," 
continues  the  log,  "  to  enter  our  ship.  Whereupon,  two  Canoes  filled 
with  men,  with  their  Bowes  and  Arrowes  shot  at  us  after  our  sterne ; 
in  recompense  whereof  wee  discharged  sixe  Muskets,  and  killed  two 
or  three  of  them.  Then  above  a  hundred  of  them  came  to  a  Point 
of  land  to  shoote  at  vs.  There  I  shot  a  Falcon,"  (small  cannon,)  "at 
them  and  killed  two  of  them ;  whereupon  the  rest  fled  to  the  Woods. 
Yet  they  manned  off  another  Canoe  with  nine  or  ten  men,  which 
came  to  meet  vs.  So  I  shot  at  it  also  a  Falcon,  and  shot  it  through 
and  killed  one  of  them.  Then  our  men,  with  their  Muskets,  killed 
three  or  four  more  of  them.    So  they  went  their  way." 

On  the  4th  of  October,  Hudson  took  his  departure  from  New 
York  Bay,  and,  after  a  month's  voyage,  arrived  at  Dartmouth,  in 
England.  Here  he  was  detained  by  an  order  of  the  English  court, 
jealous  of  the  enterprise  of  the  Dutch,  but  contrived  to  dispatch  to 
hid  employers  the  journals  of  his  voyage,  and  charts  of  the  country 
he  had  explored. 


t     V   li 


It, 
I. 


i578 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  III8T0KY. 


The  last  voyage  and  discovery,  and  the  melancholy  fate  of  thia 
famous  navigator  may  be  briefly  narrated.  In  April  of  the  next 
year  (1610)  he  again  sailed,  with  twenty-three  men,  for  an  English 
Company,  in  search  of  the  North-west  Passage.  He  first  stopped 
at  Iceland,  and  then  doubling  the  southern  extremity  of  Greenland 
was  involved  in  masses  of  floating  ice.  Getting  clear  of  this  obstruc- 
tion, in  July,  he  passed  through  the  strait,  and  entered  the  great 
inland  sea,  both  of  which  still  commemorate  his  name.  For  a  month 
he  steered  southerly,  and  then  was  brought  up  by  the  land.  The 
vessel  was  hauled  aground,  and  a  most  dismal  winter  was  passed  by 
the  crew.  Grievous  suffering  was  endured  from  cold  and  hunger 
and  mutinous  discontent  among  the  men,  aggravated  by  the  impa- 
tience and  irritability  of  their  commander,  soon  ripened  into  a  tra- 
gical consummation. 

"You  shall  vnderstand,"  says  Habakkuk  Pricket,  (who  wrote  a 
narrative  of  the  voyage,)  "  that  our  Master  kept  (in  his  house  at  Lon- 
don) a  young  man  named  Henrie  Oreene,  borne  in  Kent,  of  Worship- 
full  Parents,  but  by  his  leud  life  and  conversation  hee  had  lost  the 
good-will  of  all  his  friends  and  spent  all  that  hee  had.  This  man 
our  Master  would  have  to  Sea  with  him,  because  hee  could  write 
well;  our  Master  gave  him  meate,  and  drinke,  and  lodging,  and  by 
meanes  of  one  Master  Vhison,  with  much  adoe,  got  four  poundes  of 
his  Mother  to  buy  him  clothes,  wherewith  Master  Venson  would  not 
trust  him,  but  sawe  it  layed  out  himselfe  *****  So 
Jlenric  Greene  stood  vpright  and  very  inward  with  the  Ma.ster,  and 
was  a  serviceable  man  every  way  for  manhood;  but  for  Religion  hee 
would  say  hee  was  cleane  paper,  whereon  he  might  write  what  hee 
would,"  During  the  winter,  the  eflecte  of  the  gunner  (who  had 
died  early  in  the  season),  were  put  up  for  sale  at  the  maiii-nmst,  as 
usual,  and  Greene  wished  to  purchase  a  certain  "gray  gowne,"  be- 
longing to  the  deceased,  and  no  doubt  very  desirable  in  the  rigor 
of  an  arctic  winter.  But  Hudson,  being  dissatisfied  with  hirn,  said 
he  should  not  have  it,  and  sharply  reminded  him  that  none  of  Lis 
friends  at  home  would  trust  him  with  the  value  of  twenty  shillings. 

"The  jealous  and  irritable  temper  of  mariners,  long  pent  together 
in  disastrous  voyages,  is  well  known;  and  when  to  this  source  of 
dissension  are  superadded  privation,  suffering,  and  the  constant 
dread  of  starvation,  it  is  hardly  surprising  that  their  minds  should 
be  filled  with  morbid  imaginings,  and  that  trifh-s  should  a.ssuine 
unnatural  importance.     In  many  a  drcarv  narrative  of  the  sciu:,  we 


THE  DUTCH   IN    AllESICA. 


379 


find  matters  of  no  greater  moment  than  this  wretched  'gray  gowne,' 
magnified  into  importance,  and  the  cause  of  the  most  lamentable 
quarrels  and  mutinies."  "You  shall  see,"  says  Master  Pricket, 
"how  the  Deuill  out  of  this  wrought  with  Henrie  Greene." 

About  the  middle  of  June,  the  little  crew  of  forlorn  adventurers 
again  got  under  way,  but  were  soon  once  more  fast  in  the  ice.  The 
scanty  remainder  of  ship-stores  had  been  already  divided  by  the  cap- 
tain, "(and  hee  wept  when  bee  gaue  it,)"  and  he  now  incurred  fresh 
ill-will  by  compelling  the  crew  to  produce  for  the  common  benefit 
any  remnant  of  private  stores  which  they  might  still  have  in  their 
chests.  A  barbarous  plot  was  now  hatched  up  by  Greene  and  Wil- 
son the  boatswain,  to  set  the  captain,  with  the  sick  and  disabled, 
adrift  in  the  ship's  boatj  as  the  most  likely  mode  of  saving  the  lives 
of  the  remainder;  and,  accordingly,  the  unfortunate  Hudson,  with 
his  young  son  and  six  others,  (mostly  sick  or  lame,)  were  treacher- 
ously seized  and  put  aboard  the  boat  towing  astern.  Before  the 
ship  was  clear  of  the  ice,  the  mutineers  cut  the  line,  and  left  their 
unfortunate  victims  to  perish  of  cold  and  hunger.  On  their  way 
homeward,  four  of  them,  including  Greene  and  Wilson,  were  killed 
by  the  savages,  and  old  Juet,  whose  crime,  as  well  as  that  of  Greene, 
was  enhanced  by  past  friendship  and  favours  received  from  Hudson, 
perished  of  hunger  on  the  voyage.  The  company,  the  next  year, 
dispatched  the  same  vessel,  under  Captain  Thomas  Button,  to  search 
for  the  deserted  commander,  and  to  complete  the  supposed  discovery 
of  the  North-west  passage;  but  neither  object  was  accomplished. 


CWADTITX)     TTT 

TOTAOES  OF   THE   DUTCH  TO  MANNAHATA. — EXPEDITION  OP  BLOI 
AND  CHRISTIAANSE.  —  NEW   AMSTERDAM  (NEW  YORK)  POUNDED. 
— COLONY    PLANTED  ON   THE   DELAWARE:    SINGULARLY   DE- 
STROYED.— GOVERNORS    MINUIT    AND   VAN    TWILLER. — 
SETTLEMENT  OP  THE   SWEDES  ON   THE    DELAWARE. 

Is  the  year  1810,  following  the  discovery  of  the  Hudson,  private 
individuals  in  Holland  dispatched  a  vessel  to  traffic  for  furs  with  the 
Indians  inhabiting  its  shores;  the  success  of  this  expedition  led  to 


'> 


:    !l    it 


•♦n 


380 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTOKY. 


several  others;  and  some  little  trading  stations  were  established  on  the 
island  of  Mannahata  (Manhattan  or  New  York).  In  1614,  a  corpora 
tion,  entitled  "The  Amsterdam  Licensed  Trading  West  India  Compa- 
ny," was  chartered,  (with  a  monopoly  of  commerce  in  the  newly-found 
region,)  which,  that  same  year,  dispatched  thither  two  vessels,  under 
Adrian  Blok  and  Hendrick  Christiaanse.  The  former,  arriving  first 
at  Mannahata,  and  losing  his  vessel  by  fire,  set  to  work  with  much 
energy  to  build  another,  in  which  he  again  set  forth  on  a  voyage  of 
discovery.  Passing  through  that  narrow  strait,  which,  from  its  furious 
tides,  his  crew  called  Helle-gadt  (Hell's  Gap) — a  name  which,  with 
slight  alteration,  it  still  retains — he  passed  through  Long  Island 
Sound,  and  proceeded  as  far  as  Cape  Cod,  where  he  found  his  con- 
sort.  The  two  captains  cruised  westward  along  shore  in  company 
surveying  the  coast,  and  naming  the  islands.  They  discovered 
Narraganset  Bay  and  the  Connecticut  and  Housatonic  rivers;  and 
Block  island,  which  they  passed,  still  commemorates  the  name  of 
its  discoverer. 

Ascending  the  Hudson,  they  built  a  fort  on  Castle  Island,  a  little 
below  the  present  city  of  Albany ;  and  in  the  following  year  another 
was  erected  on  Manhattan,  where  New  York  now  stands,  and 
whither  for  many  years  the  Dutch  vessels  came  regularly  to  receive 
their  cargoes  of  furs.  Their  powerful  neighbours,  the  Iroquois  or 
Five  Nations,  long  at  deadly  feud  with  the  Canadian  French,  viewed 
with  satisfaction  the  establishment  of  rival  settlements,  and  main- 
tained friendly  relations  in  general,  both  with  the  Dutch  and  English. 
Though  once  disturbed  by  a  visit  from  Captain  Argall,  from  Vir- 
ginia, who  claimed  the  country  in  behalf  of  his  government,  and 
oco^ionally  by  the  bucaniers,  tht,  Dutch  continued  to  maintain 
their  traffic,  and  slowly  to  extend  the:/  settlements.  In  1621,  a  new 
corporation,  entitled  "The  West  Indian  Company  of  the  New  Neth- 
erlands,'' was  chartered  by  tho  States-General  of  Holland,  which,  in 
1623,  dispatched  a  large  number  of  settlers,  under  Captain  Mey,  lo 
their  colony  of  Mannahata.  lie  relieved  the  wants  of  that  little  settle- 
ment, (wh'ch  no  ship  had  visited  for  two  years,)  and,  after  exploring 
the  coast  some  way  to  the  eastward,  turned  south,  and  finally  entered 
Delaware  river.  Cape  May,  named  aft«r  him,  commemorates  the  visit. 
He  passed  up  the  river,  and,  on  Gloucester  point,  a  few  miles  below 
tl)e  present  city  of  Philadelphia,  founded  a  settlement,  which  ho 
named  Fort  Nassau,  but  which,  after  a  brief  tenancy,  was  abandoned. 
Fort  Orange,  on  the  site  of  Albany,  was  built  the  same  year. 


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THE   DUTCH   IN    AMEBICA. 


881 


Two  years  afterwards,  (1625,)  the  company  sent  two  more  ships, 
under  command  of  Peter  Minuit,  the  first  governor  of  "The  New 
Netherlands,"  (as  the  country  was  now  called,)  with  a  number  of 
Walloon  emi -irants,  ,.  .^o  settled  on  Long  Island,  where  the  "  Walla- 
bout,"  or  "Walloon-bend"  still  distinguishes  the  place  of  their  selec- 
tion. In  1630,  De  Vriez,  a  skillful  navigator,  who  had  served  in 
the  East  Indies,  was  sent,  with  thirty  or  forty  people,  to  found  a 
new  colony  on  the  Delaware.  On  the  site  of  what  is  now  known  as 
Lewistown,  on  the  southern  shore,  he  built  a  small  fort,  which  he 
called  Hoeren-kill,  and  having  landed  the  settlers,  with  their  stock 
and  supplies,  sailed  for  Holland,  leaving  one  Gillis  Osset  in  command. 

"The  new  settlement  had  but  a  brief  existence,  and  owed  its  de- 
struction to  an  incident  singular  enough.  The  Dutch,  by  way  of 
taking  formal  possession  of  the  country,  had  erected  a  pillar,  to 
which  was  affixed  a  piece  of  tin,  inscribed  with  the  arms  of  IloUaud. 
This  tinsel  bit  of  heraldry,  ere  long,  was  appropriated  by  an  Indian 
chief,  who,  unconscious  of  its  high  import,  converted  it  into  tobacco- 
pipes  for  his  private  smoking.  At  this  insult,  as  he  deemed  it,  to 
'Their  High  Mightinesses,  the  States  General,'  Osset  became  ridicu- 
lously enraged.  Vindication  of  outraged  dignity  is  generally  vehe- 
ment in  proportion  to  the  paucity  of  the  aggrieved  attribute;  and 
the  Dutch  commander,  with  strange  infatuation,  refused  to  be  satisfied 
with  any  excuse  or  reparation  which  the  Indians  could  offer.  Seeing 
him  thus  unappeasable,  and  perhaps  supposing  the  crime  to  be  of 
a  heinous  religious  nature,  they  finally  cut  off'  the  head  of  the  of- 
fending chief,  and  brought  it,  a  grisly  token  of  submission,  to  the  fort. 

"Osset  stood  aghast  at  the  consequences  of  his  obstinate  sulkiness, 
and  told  the  Indians  that  they  should  only  have  brought  the  culprit 
before  him  for  reproval.  But  the  mischief  had  been  done,  and  the 
friends  and  relations  of  the  murdered  chief  resolved  on  a  sweeping 
and  terrible  revenge.  All  was  contrived  with  savage  artifice  and 
secrecy.  The  colotiiats  were  mostly  engaged  in  tillage,  and  only  a  few 
remained  at  the  fort.  These  were  massacred  by  some  warriors  who 
entered  under  pretence  of  selling  beaver-skins.  The  Indians  then 
walked  slowly  to  those  in  the  fields,  and  fell  to  conversing  in  a 
friendly  manner.  Not  the  slightest  suspicion  was  awakened  until, 
at  a  given  signal,  the  savages  fell  on  them,  and  butchered  them  to  a 
man.  The  entire  colony,  consisting  of  thirty-four  men,  perished 
at  a  blow. 

"In  December,  De  Vriez  returned  from  Holland,  and  the  utter 


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TllK   PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


silence  of  the  dwellings  forewarned  him  of  misfortune.  Bones  and 
skulls  lay  bleaching  on  the  shore.  The  Indians,  with  whom  he 
was  soon  in  friendly  intercourse,  informed  him,  with  all  the  circum- 
stances, of  the  murder  of  his  countrymen."* 

In  1683,  Minuit  was  replaced  in  office  by  "Wouter  Van  Twillor 
under  whom  Fort  Amsterdam  (the  settlement  at  Mannahata)  contin- 
ued to  increase.  Wind-mills,  in  emulation  of  the  mother-country 
were  built,  and  negro  slaves  were  imported,  A  church  and  a 
species  of  state-house  were  also  erected.  Minuit,  deposed  from 
office,  entered  the  service  of  Christina  of  Sweden.  Her  father,  the 
great  Gustavus,  had  alreau7  planned  the  foundation  of  a  settlement 
in  America,  and  had  devoted  a  large  sum  ($400,000)  to  the  object. 
Oxenstiern,  the  Swedish  minister,  prompted  by  this  circumstance 
and  by  the  persuasions  of  Minuit.  readily  came  into  the  scheme; 
and,  about,  the  year  1683,  an  expedition  was  dispatched  to  the  Del- 
aware, which  erected  a  fort,  called  after  the  queen,  Christina,  and 
made  a  settlement  near  "Wilmington.  The  footing  thus  obtained  by 
the  Swedes  was  afterwards  a  source  of  no  small  trouble  and  uneasi- 
ness to  their  Dutch  neighbours. 


uHiirxjcjJn    xv. 

GOVERNOR   KEIFT.  —  GOVERNOR    STDYVESANT;    HIS    CHARACTER: 
HE  SUBDUES  THE   SWEDES. —  UNTENABLE   CLAIMS  OF   THE  ENG- 
LISH.— GRANT   BY   CHARLES   II.   TO   THE    DUKE  OF   YORK. 
—  NEW  AMSTERDAM  TAKEN  BY  COLONEL    NICOLLS:   RE- 
TAKEN  BY   THE  DUTCH. —  FINAL  CESSION  TO  ENGLAND. 


In  1688,  William  Keift,  in  place  of  Yan  Twiller,  was  appointed 
governor  of  the  New  Netherlands,  and  was  speedily  involved  in 
difficulties  with  the  gradually  encroaching  English.  lie  forbade 
them  to  trade  at  the  fort  of  Good  Hope,  (a  small  Dutch  post  in  Con- 
necticut, where  the  city  of  Hartford  now  stands,)  and  broke  up  by 
force  a  settlement  whith  they  had  made  on  Long  Island.  In  1643, 
the  English  colonies,  now  greatly  superior  in  strength  to  their  neigh 
hours,  entered  into  a  league  against  them.  The  horrors  of  Indian 
warfare  were  soon  added  to  the  other  troubles  of  the  country.    Keift, 

•  Dittcovereni  &c.,  of  Americii. 


THE    DUTCH   IN  AMEKICA. 


S83 


on  suspicion  of  hostile  intentions,  had  attacked  a  party  of  the  natives, 
iind  had  massacred  nearly  a  hundred  of  them.  An  Indian  war, 
Iftsting  for  two  years,  and  effectually  checking  the  progress  of  the 
settlement,  was  the  result;  but  was  finally  terminated  by  treaty. 
"To  Keift,  in  1647,  succeeded  Peter  Stuyvesant,  the  last  and  most 
Cuiious  of  the  Dutch  governors.  His  memory,  immortjilized  by  the 
more  comic  muse  of  Irving,  always  presents  itself  in  the  shape  of  a 
weather-tanned,  fierce-looking,  silver-legged  old  warrior,  with  an  air 
of  obstinate  determination,  quite  sufficient  to  justify  his  popular  so- 
briquet of  Ilardhoppig  Piet,  or  Peter  the  Ileadstrong.  lie  became 
speedily  embroiled  with  all  his  neighbours;  but  justice  must  admit 
that  the  right  was  on  his  side — that  the  Dutch  were  the  aggrieved 
party — and  that  in  the  contests  which  troubled  his  administration, 
lie  displayed  all  the  qualities  of  a  gallant  soldier,  an  energetic  magis- 
trate, and  a  faithful  servant  of  his  employers."  By  his  wise  and 
humane  government,  he  maintained  peace  with  the  Indians;  and  by 
removing  oppressive  restrictions  on  commerce,  greatly  forwarded 
the  interests  of  his  colony.  The  company,  with  a  liberal  and  far- 
sighted  policy,  in  advance  of  the  age,  prohibited  all  religious  perse- 
cution, and  sought  to  make  the  New  Netherlands  a  refuge  for  the 
exiled  believers  of  any  creed.  "From  France,  the  Low  Countries, 
the  l?hine.  Northern  Germany,  Bohemia,  the  mountains  of  Piedmont, 
the  suffering  Protestants  flocked  to  this  trans-atlantic  asylum." 

The  new  governor,  a  man  of  quick  temper  find  of  military  ardour, 
was  not  likely  to  submit  to  aggression  from  his  neighbours;  and  a 
piece  of  treacherous  violence,  committed  by  Risingh,  the  Swedish 
governor,  afforded  him  an  opportunity  to  wrest  back  the  territory 
which  the  latter  had  gained  by  a  species  of  encroachment.  On  the 
Delaware  river,  where  Newcastle  now  stands,  the  Dutch  had  planted 
a  post,  named  Fort  Casimir — an  object  of  much  jealousy  to  the 
Swedes.  Risingh,  wit'n  thirty  men,  under  pretext  of  a  friendly  visit, 
had  entered  this  fort,  and  had  been  hospitably  entertained;  but 
treacherously  seized  it,  with  all  the  houses  and  other  property  of  the 
company,  which  it  protected.  To  avenge  this  outrage,  the  sturdy 
governor,  with  a  force  of  six  hundred  men,  sailed  up  the  Delaware, 
and,  after  retaking  Fort  Casimir,  marched  into  "New  Sweden,"  as 
the  country  was  called,  and  laid  siege  to  Fort  Christina  itself.  Risingh 
was  coini>€lled  to  surrender,  and  the  whole  settlement  was  incorpo- 
rated with  the  Dutch  province — most  of  the  settlers  remaining  and 
submitting  peaceably  to  the  rule  of  the  new  government. 


m 


881 


THK    PKOPLE'8   BOOK   OP   HISTORY. 


Till'  luHtre  of  tliia  triumph  wan  soon  overshadcd  by  the  Huccossriil 
rapacity  of  a  more  formidable  foe;  and  the  little  province,  so  peiiec- 
fully  settled,  and,  for  the  most  part,  so  moderately  and  wisely  gov- 
erned, was  destined  to  be  ubhorbed  in  the  overwh-  Iming  progress  of 
a  people  the  most  active,  aggrescive,  and  retentive  of  conquest  which 
the  world  has  ever  seen.  The  troubles  with  the  eastern  English 
colonics  had,  for  a  time,  been  settled  by  a  treaty,  which  adtnitted  tlio 
latter  to  a  share  of  Long  Island.  "But,  as  tlie  imjKjrtance  of  tho 
trans-atlantic  posscasions  became  more  obvious,  these  questions  of 
priority  of  settlement  were  ;nerged  in  the  more  decisive  contest  be- 
tween  the  arrogant  assumption  of  the  British  crown,  and  the  just 
but  feebly-defended  rights  of  the  states-general.  There  could  hardly 
be  a  claim  more  untenable  than  that  advanced  by  England  to  tho 
jX)S8casion  of  the  little  settlementa  which  the  Dutch,  with  such  pa- 
tient and  persevering  industry,  had  reclaimed  from  the  wildorncfia. 
The  whole  country  which  they  occupied  had  been  unquestionably 
first  explored  by  Hudson,  sailing  in  the  service  of  the  Dutch  East 
India  Company,  and  had  immediately  afterwards  been  settled  by 
Hollanders  in  advance  of  any  other  nation.  Purcha.'<e  and  treaty  with 
the  natives  had  added  confirmation  to  their  title.  These  perfectly 
urijissailuble  grounds  of  pos.se88ion  the  English  attempted  to  invade 
by  claiming  that  Hudson  was  an  Englishman,  whose  discovery  must 
therefore  enure  to  the  benefit  of  his  own  country,  and  that  Cabot 
sailing  by  those  coasts  an  hundred  and  fifty  years  before,  had  thus 
secured  the  right  to  the  whole  to  tho.se  who  employed  him.  This 
proposition,  it  is  needless  to  say,  was  of  a  self-stultifying  nature,  for 
if  Hudson  was  an  Englishman,  Cabot  was  a  Venetian,  and,  accordiiv 
to  this  rule,  the  whole  country  nni-t  have  belonged  to  the  little 
republic  of  Venire.  Moreover,  tbore  was  no  evidence  that  Cabot 
had  ever  even  seen  the  inlets  and  recesses  which  the  Dutch  had 
selected  for  the  site  of  their  settlements."* 

Cha-  ^  II.,  of  England,  not  long  after  his  restoration  to  the  throne, 
prompted  by  enmity  to  Holland,  and  a  desire  to  extend  his  terri- 
tories in  N'Tth  America,  made  a  grant  to  his  brother,  the  duke  of 
York  and  AUwiny,  (afterwards  James  II.,)  of  a  vast  tract  of  land, 
including  all  the  r>utch  settlements.  To  put  the  grantee  in  posses- 
sion, a  fleet,  carrying  three  hundred  soldiers,  under  command  of 
Colonel  Richard  Nic'Us,  with  Sir  George  Carteret  and  Sir  Rok'rt 
Ciirr,  was  dispatched  to  America;  and  in  August  of  1664,  came  to 

*  Diacoverers,  Sic,  of  America. 


THE   DUTCH    IN    AMERICA. 


886 


anchor  before  the  little  cnpital  of  New  AinRtordnm.  Tlie  govornor, 
(Icmaiiding  the  purport  of  this  armament,  wfis  informed  by  Nicolln 
that  liis  orders  were  to  tal<e  possession  of  the  town  and  country,  arid 
offered  the  fairest  terms  in  case  of  surrender.  Stuyvesant,  without 
a  force  sufTicient  to  repel  the  hostile  squadron,  and  beset  by  tho 
clnmoroufl  cowardice  of  the  council  and  the  citizens,  remained  for 
some  diiys  in  a  state  of  great  perplexity  and  irritation,  refusing  to 
consent  to  a  capitulation,  and  keeping  the  town  in  grievous  suspense 
and  agitation.  Compelled  by  circumstances,  ho  finally  signed  a  sur- 
render on  the  most  honourable  terms,  and  then,  disgusted  with  foreign 
nggreg.sion  and  domestic  pusillanimity,  retired  in  wrath  to  his  coun- 
try-seat in  the  Houwery,  where  he  j)ii8scd  the  remainder  of  his  days. 

The  English,  taking  undisputed  possession  of  the  country,  in  hon- 
our of  tho  proprietor,  changed  the  name  of  New  Amsterdam  to  New 
York,  and  that  of  Fort  Orange  to  Albany.  In  compliment  to  tho 
family  of  Carteret,  which  came  from  the  isle  of  Jersey,  the  southern 
portion  of  the  New  Netherlands  received  the  title  of  New  Jersey. 

The  new  rulers  of  the  country,  Nicolls  and  his  successor,  Lovelace, 
governed  in  an  arbitrary  manner,  admitting  no  authority  except 
such  as  was  lodged  in  their  own  hands  and  in  the  officers  ot  their 
appointment,  and  imposing  grievous  and  unreasonable  taxes  on  the 
original  colonists.  The  latter  governor,  it  is  said,  even  avowed  tho 
policy  of  exacting  such  burdensome  imposts,  that  "the  people  might 
have  no  leisure  to  think  of  any  thing  except  how  to  pay  them." 
The  greatfi't  <'''  \>i.  nt,  consequently,  prevailed,  and  i emonstrances 
so  vehcmct  ,  were  sent  in,  that  they  were  condemned  to  be  burned, 
aa  trcHKi  ■  iMo,  by  the  common  hangman.  Hostilities  being  resumed 
betwcon  11  >lland  and  England,  in  1673,  a  small  Dutch  squadron, 
undt  —  oniitmand  of  Evcrtsen,  appeared  before  New  York.  Through 
th'  ireacher}'  of  John  Manning,  who  commanded  the  fort,  it  was 
surrendered  without  a  shot  being  fired ;  the  country  was  regained 
with  the  sjime  facility  with  which  it  had  been  lost;  and  a  council 
of  the  Dutch  being  called,  Antony  Colve  was  chosen  as  colonial 
governor.  Early  the  next  year,  howev  r,  a  treaty  of  peace  was  con- 
cluded, by  which  each  party  agreed  to  surrender  conquests  made 
during  tlie  war;  and  the  Nsw  Netlierlands  falling  within  the  scope 
of  this  agreement,  were  accordingly  at  length  formally  relinquished 
to  the  English  aggressors. 
Vol.  III.— 25 


V 


It**^ 


u 


■■«^ 


PART  V. 


,'    ■      ! 


,^    .^--',     (^, 


•V^'^'V^'W^ 


!ifr!?  ••'•»'/f»i  ■'   -,'   -ir^y:'j 


i^&f  <fOT4  itt  Smtrita:' 


^^S^^^^^^>^^^i^^»^^^«^^^>«^»^^N^i«» 


C  A  I  A  D  A.' 


EARLY     FISHING     V0YAOE8. — OIOYANNI     TERRAZANO.  —  HI8 

TOTAOB  IN  THE  DAUPHIN. — ARRIVES  AT  NORTH  AMERICA. 

— DESCRIPTION  OP   THE   COUNTRY.  —  ITS   INHABITANTS. 

—  7KRRAZAN0     COASTS     NORTHERLY.  —  KIDNAPPING, 

— THE  GREAT   HARBOUR.  —  FRIENDLINESS  OP    THE 

INDIANS. VERRAZANO   SAILS   TO   LABRADOR. — 

RETURNS  TO  FRANCE.  —  HIS  SUBSEQUENT  FATE. 

• 
For  some  time  after  the  discovery  of  the  New  World,  rto  national 
attempt  seems  to  have  been  made  by  the  French  to  secure  a  foothold 
on  ita  shores.  The  Basque  and  Breton  fishermen,  the  most  hardy 
and  enterprising  of  their  day,  not  long  afler  the  memorable  voyage 
of  Cabot,  discovered  and  turned  to  account  that  mine  of  wealth- 
more  certain  and  enduring  than  those  of  Potosi  or  Mexico — the 

*  The  origin  of  this  word  is  uncertiiin.  "  In  1 535,  one  Stephano  Gomez  sailed 
from  Spain  to  the  iHland  of  Newfoundland,  and,  it  would  seem,  entered  the  Gulf  of 
8L  Liwrence,  and  traded  on  its  shores.  According  to  the  Spanish  accounts,  his  peo> 
pic,  disappointed  in  their  expectations  of  treasure,  frequently  repeated  the  words 
'  Aca  oada,'  ('  here  is  nothing,')  and  thuii  conferred  on  the  whole  province  the  name 
of  Canada.  Thix  title,  however,  is  more  probably  derived  from  the  Iroquois  word, 
'K.'tnri;ita,'  signifying  a  elusU-r  of  cabins." 


THE  FRENCH  IN  AMERICA. 


887 


Great  Bank  of  Newfoundland.    Cape  Breton  still  attests  by  its  name 
the  early  presence  of  these  hardy  mariners. 

In  1523,  Francis  I.,  moved,  perhaps  as  much  by  jealousy  of  his 
Spanish  and  Portuguese  rivals  as  by  any  abstract  zeal  for  discovery, 
fitted  out  four  vessels,  the  command  of  which  was  confided  to  Gio- 
vanni V'^rrazano,  a  noble  Florentine,  who,  like  his  eminent  Italian 
countrymen,  Columbus,  Cabot,  and  Vespucius,  wanting  appreciation 
and  encouragement  at  home,  had  carried  his  genius  and  enterprise  to 
the  service  of  a  foreign  court.     This  expedition  failed,  on  account 
of  an  adverse  storm,  but  the  enterprising  commander,  in  the  following 
year,  in  a  vessel  called  the  Dauphin,  with  fifty  men,  again  set  sail, 
from  the  island  of  Madeira,  and  steered  westward.     On  the  20th  of 
February,  (1524,)  "we  were  overtaken,"  says  Verrazano,  (in  his  letter 
of  report  to  the  king,)  "  with  as  sharpe  and  terrible  a  tempest  as  ever 
any  paylers  suffered,  whereof,  with  the  divine  helpe  and  mercifull 
assistance  of  Almighty  God,  and  the  goodnesse  of  our  shippe,  accom- 
panied with  the  good  happe  of  her  fortunate  name,"  (a  courtly  allu- 
sion,) "we  were  delivered,  and  with  a  prosperous  winde  followed 
our  course  West  and  by  North.     And  in  other  25  days  we  made 
above  400  leagues  more,  when  we  discovered  a  new  land,  never 
before  scene  of  any  man  either  ancient  or  moderne." 

This  land,  it  is  probable,  was  Carolina  or  Georgia,  from  the  nature 
of  the  forests,  which  he  describes  as  "  mightj'^  great  woods,  some  very 
thicke  and  some  thinne,  replenished  with  divers  sorts  of  trees  as 
pleasant  and  delectable  to  behold  as  it  is  possible  to  imagine.  And 
your  Maiestie  may  not  think  these  are  like  the  woodes  of  Ilercynia 
or  the  wilde  deserts  of  Tartary,  and  the  northerne  coasts,  full  of 
fruitlesse  trees;  but  they  are  full  of  palme  trees,  bay  trees,  and  high 
L\jiresse  trees,  and  many  other  sorts  of  trees  unknowen  in  Europe, 
which  yeeld  most  sweet  savors  farre  from  the  shoare,  the  property 
whereof  we  could  not  learn, — neither  doe  wee  thinke  that  they,  par- 
talcing  of  Oie  east  world  round  al)oid  them,  are  altogether  voyd  of  drugs 
or  spicery,  and  other  riches  of  gold,  seeing  the  colour  of  the  land 
doth  so  much  argue  it."  The  belief  in  treasure,  in  spices,  and  espe- 
cially in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  East  Indies,  was  one  of  which 
all  early  voyagers  to  Anrterica,  from  Columbus  down,  were  with  the 
utmost  difficulty  disabused. 

After  sailing  in  vain  fifty  leagues  to  the  south  in  quest  of  a  port, 
the  commander  again  turned  northward,  and  finally  made  a  landinc 
on  the  open  beach.    The  Indians,  in  great  numbers,  came  to  meti 


.*  ni 


m 


m\ 


4 


888 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


the  discoverers,  and  evinced  a  friendly  and  hospitable  spirit.  They 
are  described  as  looking  "not  much  unlike  the  Saracens," — "with  a 
cheerfull  and  steady  looke,  not  strong  of  body,  yet  sharpe-witted 
nimble,  and  exceeding  great  runners."  Their  only  clothing  was  a 
species  of  cincture,  made  of  small  furs,  "  which  they  fasten,"  says 
Verrazano,  "unto  a  narrow  girdle  made  of  grasse  very  artificially 
wrought,  hanged  about  with  the  tayles  of  other  beastes,  which  dangle 
to  their  knees.  Some  of  them  weare  garlands  made  of  byrdes  fea- 
thers." Still  purauing  the  grand  ignis  fatuus  of  his  day,  he  holds 
that  they  are  "like  to  the  people  of  the  east  parts  of  the  world,  and 
especially  to  them  of  the  uttermost  parts  of  China." 

Sailing  northeasterly  along  the  coast,  he  "saw  every  where  great 
fires,  by  reason,  of  the  multitude  of  the  inhabitants,"  but  from  the 
want  of  harbours,  could  not  effect  a  landing.  A  young  man,  who 
swam  through  the  surf  with  presents  to  a  multitude  of  Indians  ashore 
being  nearly  drowned,  was  rescued  by  them  from  the  waves,  and 
carried  ashore  with  great  kindness;  "then  setting  him  on  the  ground 
at  the  foote  of  a  little  hil  against  the  sunne,  they  began  to  behold 
him  with  great  admiration,  marveilling  at  the  whitenesse  of  his  fleshe- 
and  putting  off  his  clothes,  they  made  him  warm  at  a  greate  fire 
not  without  our  great  feure  which  remained  in  the  boate,  that  they 
would  have  rested  him  at  that  fire,  and  have  eaten  him."  With 
all  manner  of  caresses  and  kindness,  they  revived  him,  and  restored 
him  to  his  companions. 

The  usual  return  -for  this  kindly  treatment  was  speedily  made. 
Sailing  farther  on,  the  French  landed,  and  twenty  of  them  explored 
the  country.  They  found  in  the  woods  an  old  woman  and  a  young 
one,  each  with  three  children  on  her  shoulders.  "Our  men,"  says 
the  cool  commander,  "tooke  a  childe  from  the  olde  woman  to  bring 
into  France,  and  going  about  to  take  the  yung  woman,  which  was 
very  beautiful  and  of  tall  stature,  they  could  not  possibly,  for  the 
great  outcries  she  made,  bring  her  to  the  sea;  and  especially,"  (lio 
continues  apologetically,)  "hauing  great  woods  to  passe  thorow  and 
being  farre  from  the  shippe,  we  purposed  to  leave  her  behind,  bearing 
away  ifie  cJiilde  ouely," 

Still  keeping  along  the  shore,  ho  found  the  land  well  peopled,  and 
finally  entered  a  great  harbour,  which  he  describes  as  lying  "in  the 
Paralele  of  Koine,  in  41  degrees  and  2  torces,"  and  which,  from  his 
description,  may  have  V)con  either  the  entire  region  of  waters  lyinp 
around  New  York,  or  those  of  Narragansett  bay.    Many  canoes  catne 


W 


'«? 


THE  FRENCH  IN  AMERICA. 


889 


off  to  his  vessel,  filled  with  Indians — among  them,  he  says,  "  2  kings 
of  80  goodly  stature  and  shape  as  is  possible  to  declare."  Here  he 
staid  fifteen  days,  enjoying  the  most  friendly  intercourse  with  the 
natives — "oftentimes,"  he  says,  "one  of  the  two  kings  comming  with 
his  queene  and  many  gentlemen,  for  their  pleasure,  to  see  us,  *  *  * 
The  Queene  and  her  maids  staid  in  a  very  light  boat,  at  an  Hand  a 
quarter  of  a  league  off,  while  the  King  abode  a  long  space  in  our  ship, 
uttering  divers  conceits,  with  gestures,  viewing  with  great  admiration 
all  the  Furniture  of  the  Shippe,  demanding  the  property"  (use)  "of 
every  thing  particularly.  He  took  likewise  great  pleasure-in  behold- 
ing our  apparell,  and  in  tasting  our  meats,  and  so  courteously  taking 
bis  leave  departed."  Great  companies  of  the  Indians  came  aboard 
in  their  canoes,  with  all  friendliness  and  hospitality.  "  They  are  very 
liberal,"  says  the  narrator,  "for  they  give  what  they  have." 

From  this  haven,  on  the  5th  of  May,  he  took  his  departure,  and 
sailed  for  a  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  along  the  coast,  noting  its 
variations,  and  the  difference  of  climate.  The  people  were  much 
moije  savage  than  those  he  had  lately  seen.  "Looke,"  he  says, 
"how  much  the  former  seemed  to  be  courteous  and  gentle,  so  much 
were  these  full  of  rudeness  and  ill-maners.  «  »  *  jf 
at  any  time  we  desired  by  exchange  to  have  any  of  their  commodi- 
ties, they  used  to  come  to  the  sea-shore  upon  certaine  craggy  rocks, 
and  we  standing  in  our  boats,  they  let  downe  with  a  rope  what  it 
pleased  them  to  give  us,  crying  continually  that  we  should  not  ap- 
proach to  the  land,  demanding  immediately  the  exchange,  taking 
nothing  but  knives,  fish  hooks,  and  tooles  to  cut  withall,  neytJier  did 
they  make  any  account  of  our  courtesy.  And  when  we  had  nothing 
left  to  exchange  with  them,  when  we  departed  from  them,  they 
showed  all  signes  of  discourtesie  and  disdaine,  as  were  possible  for 
any  creature  to  invent."  These  ill-conditioned  people,  so  deficient 
in  appreciation  of  French  politeness,  probably  inhabited  the  rugged 
coast  of  Maine. 

Verrazano  cruised  along  the  shore,  it  would  seem,  for  about  two 
thousand  miles,  as  far  as  the  desolate  coasts  of  Labrador  or  New- 
foundland, and  then,  his  provisions  being  mostly  spent,  returned  to 
France.  The  subsequent  fate  of  this  old  navigator  is  involved  in 
much  myatery.  "A  short  time  after  his  arrival,"  says  Charlevoix, 
"he  fitted  out  another  expedition,  with  the  design  of  establishing  a 
colony  in  America.     All  that  we  know  of  this  enterprise  is,  that, 


having  embarked,  he  was  never  seen  more,  and  that  it  never  has 


L 


!:1 


_J 


?00 


THE  PEorLE'S    BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


beon  ascertained  what  became  of  him."  It  is  asserted,  however  in 
llamusio'a  collection  of  voyages,  that  Verrazano  and  those  who  went 
ashore  with  him,  were  killed  and  devoured  by  'he  savages  off  Cape 
Breton ;  and  it  is  said  elsewhere  that  the  same  catastrophe  happened 
on  shipboard  But  nothing  certain  has  come  down  to  us  respecting 
the  nature  o*  his  expedition  or  the  fate  of  himself  and  his  companions 


'    •'  Li  Jtl   A   i     i    i!i  li      X   i. 

JACQUES  CAR-^IER  HISC0TKR8  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE. — HI88E0- 

OND    VOYAGE. — QUEBEC.  —  HOOHELAOA,   OR    MONTREAL. — 

FRIENDLY    INDIANS. — TREACHEROUS    KIDNAPPING    BY 

CARTIER. — EXPEDITION  OP  ROBERYAL  AND  CARTIER. 

—  MISFORTUNES  AND  FAILURE. — ATTEMPTS  UNDER 

HENRY    IT — P0NT0RAV8,   CHAMPLAIN,   AND    DB 

M0NT8. — THEIR  EXPEDITION. 

In  153-i,  at  the  instance  of  High  Admiral  Chabot,  the  king  pro- 
vided means  for  another  voyage  of  discovery  in  the  same  direction, 
Jrcqucs  Cartier,  the  commander,  on  the  20th  of  April,  with  two 
small  vessels,  and  a  hundred  and  twenty  men,  saihd  from  St.  Malo, 
and  in  twenty  days  made  the  rocky  heights  of  Newfoundlaud. 
Passing  through  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  he  entered  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence,  and  coasted  along  its  shores,  delighted  with  the  beauty 
of  the  scenery  and  the  gentleness  of  the  native  inhabitants.  Uo 
entered  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  and  took  formal  possession  of  the 
country,  after  the  usual  fashion,  in  the  name  of  his  master;  and  having 
seized,  by  stratagem,  on  two  of  the  natives,  sailed  ibr  France.  The 
court,  encouraged  by  his  favourable  report,  determined  to  found  a 
colony  in  tlie  newly-explored  region. 

Accordingly,  in  May  of  the  following  year,  with  three  vessels,  ho 
again  proceeded  to  the  great  river  which  he  had  discovered,  ivnd 
pa.ssing  up  it,  early  in  the  autumn,  arrived  at  a  beautiful  island,  cov- 
ered with  vines,  wliich  he  called  the  Isle  of  Bacchu.s.  It  is  now 
known  as  the  Isle  of  Orleans,  lying  a  little  below  Quebec*     At  the 

•  ''The  di-rivatiun  of  lliiu  iiu'iie  hus  U't'ii  tifteii  oonti'Hled.  Humu  may  it  U  nearly 
Hie  origiiiul  Indi.ui  tcnii  Qut'buiu;  utliertt,  that  it  in  dorivi-d  fruui  Cuudclxic,  on  tliu 


liiOUth  of 
niontory  o 
up  their 
attended  w 
around  th< 
ness.  Wh 
friendly  cl 
shore  to  r< 
probably  h 
the  native 
vigorously 
The  instri 
anatomist,' 
bodies  full 
from  -ho  c 

Learnini 
tance  up 
thirty-five 
and  hospit 
elaga,  whe 
Indians  w^ 
town,  circi 
gades,  cons 
Indian  coi 
fare.  It  sl 
to  which  tl 
into  Monti 
the  rude  "v 
men  with  i 
their  king 
they  inigh 
to  him,  m: 
them  chap 
for  their  c 

Returni 
extreme  o 

Seine;  whiU 
tier'u  pilot, 
'promontory 
as  n  generiil 


THE  FRENCH  IN   AMERICA. 


891 


mouth  of  the  river  St.  Charles,  just  below  the  high  and  rocky  pro- 
montory  on  which  that  city  now  stands,  the  French  resolved  to  take 
up  their   winter-quarters.     An  Indian  chief,   named  Donnacona, 
attended  with  many  canoes,  came  to  welcome  them,  placing  his  arm 
around  the  admiral's  neck,  and  exhibiting  much  courtesy  and  kind- 
ness.   When  the  strangers  landed  (near  otadacona,  his  village,)  this 
friendly  chief,  with  five  hundred  of  his  tribe,  was  waiting  on  the 
shore  to  receive  them;  and  the  French,  who  had  never  seen  (nor 
probably  heard  of)  the  custom  of  smoking,  so  widely  prevalent  among 
the  native  tribes  of  America,  M'ere  astonished  to  behold  theii'  hosts 
vigorously  imbibing  from  long  reed  pipes  the  potent  fumes  of  tobacco. 
The  instrument  once  lighted,  reports  Cartier,  (a  better  sailor  than 
anatomist,)  "they  suck  at  the  other  end  so  long  that  they  fill  their 
bodies  full  of  smoke,  till  it  comes  out  of  their  mouth  and  nostrils  as 
from  .1^0  chimney  of  a  house." 

Learning  that  a  large  town,  called  Hochelaga,  lay  at  some  dis- 
tance up  the  river,  Cartier  determined  to  proceed  to  it,  and,  with 
thirty-five  of  his  men,  ascended  the  stream,  receiving  much  kindness 
and  hospitality  from  the  natives  who  inhabited  its  shores.  At  Hoch- 
elaga, where  he  arrived  on  the  2d  of  October,  more  than  a  thousand 
Indians  were  waiting  on  the  shore  to  give  him  welcome.  Their 
town,  circular  in  form,  and  surrounded  by  a  strong  rampart  of  pali- 
sades, consisted  of  fifty  great  houses,  which  were  well  supplied  with 
Indian  corn,  beans,  dried  fish,  and  other  simple  articles  of  native 
fare.  It  stood  in  ?:;  vast  field  of  corn,  and  hard  by  was  a  mountain, 
to  which  the  French  gave  the  name  of  Mont  Royale,  since  corrupted 
into  Montreal,  and  applied  to  the  European  city  which  has  replaced 
the  rude  village  of  Hochelaga.  These  people,  regarding  the  white 
men  with  a  superstitious  veneration,  brought  their  sick — among  them 
their  king,  Agohanna,  a  paralytic — to  their  guests,  entreating  that 
they  might  bo  healed.  Cartier,  disclaiming  the  powers  attributed 
to  him,  made,  however,  the  sign  of  the  crof3s  over  the  sufferers,  gave 
them  chaplets,  and  read  a  portion  of  the  gospel  of  Si.  John,  praying 
for  their  conversion. 

Returning  to  Q.iebec,  the  voyagers  suffered   terribly   from  the 
extreme  cold  of  winter,  and  twenty-five  of  them  perished  of  scurvy. 

Seine;  while  utluT  authors  muintiiin  that  it  hnd  its  origin  in  the  exchiniHtion  of  Car- 
tier's  pilot,  on  first  bi'holciing  th«  miijestic  cape,  'Quel  bee!'  ('what  a  beaki'  or 
'promontory,')  hec,  in  tlie  NornKiii,  corresponding  to  the  old  English  Ness  or  Nose, 
as  a  general  term  for  -uiy  reniarkable  hcadhind." 


■1  'W'   nu 


j*»  iW;:  i 


j&  I 


^gg         THE  PFOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 

They  experienced  gn -t  kindness  from  the  natives,  which,  as  usual 
they  repaid  by  a  pic^o  of  atrocious  perfidy.  Their  kindly  host, 
Dounacona,  with  several  other  Indians,  was  entrapped  aboard  ship 
and  made  prisoner ;  on  which,  says  Cartier,  his  people  were  incon- 
solable with  grief,  and  came  howling  round  the  vessel  like  so  many 
wolves.  Leaving  their  encampment  in  May,  1536,  these  cruel  and 
ungrateful  men  returned  to  France. 

Attracted  by  reports  of  the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  country 
watered  by  the  Groat  River,  the  Sieur  <le  Roberval,  in  1540,  procured 
from  the  king  the  office  of  viceroy  over  "New  France,"  as  the  lately- 
discovered  regif^n  was  now  termed.  Cartier,  his  lieutenant,  with 
several  vessels,  sailed  in  May,  1641,  and  at  the  end  of  three  months 
arrived  at  Quebec.  The  Indians,  remembering  past  injuries,  were 
unfriendly,  and  he  passed  an  uncomfortable  winter,  continually 
dreading  attack,  at  Cape  Rouge,  a  few  miles  further  up  the  river. 
In  June  of  the  following  year,  Roberval,  with  three  vessels,  came  to 
the  Road  of  St.  Johns,  in  Newfoundland,  where,  to  his  surprise,  he 
was  joined  by  Cartier.  Disappointed  and  moody,  the  latter  refused 
to  prosecute  the  enterprise,  and,  with  his  people,  sailed  silently  away 
in  the  night.  He  died  not  long  after  his  return  to  France.  Rober- 
val, with  his  immediate  command,  proceeded  up  the  river,  and 
passed  the  winter  in  the  quarters  of  his  lieutenant,  losing  fifty  of 
his  men  by  scurvy.  Other  losses  succeeded;  the  crews  were  sick, 
discontented,  and  seditious;  in  1543  he  made  his  way  back  to  France. 
Six  years  afterwards,  he  again  sailed  on  a  fresh  expedition  to  the 
country ;  but  nothing  was  ever  learned  of  the  fate  of  him  or  his 
companions. 

Discouraged  by  these  repeated  failures  and  losses,  the  French,  for 
half  a  century,  made  no  further  attempts  to  colonize  this  inhospitable 
province,  but  confined  themselves  to  tisliing  and  traffic  with  the 
natives  on  the  e  iist.  It  was  not  until  1598,  that  the  spirit  of  enter- 
prise, under  the  auspices  of  Henry  IV.,  was  once  more  awakened. 
In  tliat  year,  tlie  Marquis  de  la  Roche,  as  viceroy  of  New  France 
sailed  for  Nova  Scoti  *,  but  accomplished  nothing  in  the  way  of  set- 
tlement, except  t:;  leave  forty  wretched  convicts  on  Sable  island, 
where  most  of  them,  in  a  few  yean\  perished  from  want  and  ex- 
poHurr.  Private  enterprise  jiroved  more  fortunate,  and  led  the  way 
to  better  judged  and  more  successful  effi^rts  on  the  part  of  govcrri- 
rnont,  Pontgrav<^,  a  merchant  of  St.  Malo,  a  man  of  great  eiitcrnriae 
r.nd  judgment,  had  for  several  years  voyaged  to  the  Saguenay,  and 


THE   FBENCU   IM   AMEUICA. 


898 


brought  cargoes  of  valuable  furs,  obtained  by  traffic  with  the  Indians. 
Ill  1603,  under  the  patronage  of  De  Chatte,  governc  r  of  Dieppe,  and 
successor  in  office  to  De  la  Boche,  he  fitted  out  an  exp  dition  to 
^evv  France,  taking  mih  him,  as  associate  in  command,  Samuel  de 
Cbamplain,  a  naval  officer,  of  high  repute  for  his  services  in  the 
East  Indies. 

Arriving  in  f  St.  Lawrence,  and  leaving  their  ships  at  Tadousac, 
the  voyagers  ascended  as  far  as  Hochelaga  or  Montreal — but  the 
Indian  village,  so  thrifty  and  populous  in  the  days  of  Cartier,  had 
by  this  time,  it  woul  I  seem,  nearly,  if  not  quite,  disappeared.  War 
or  pestilence  had  probably  terminated  the  brief  and  uncertain  tenure 
by  which  this,  like  all  uncivilized  tribes,  held  its  possession  of  a 
home.  The  explorers  returned  to  France,  where  the  Sieur  de  Monts, 
who  had  succeeded  De  Chatte  in  office,  fitted  out  four  ships  to  effect 
the  colonization  of  New  France.  With  Champlain,  Potrincourt,  and 
many  other  adventurers,  in  1604,  he  proceeded  to  the  Bay  of  Fundy, 
where,  on  a  small  island,  he  wintered — the  scurvy,  as  before,  making 
terrible  ravages  among  his  people.  At  Port  Royal  (now  Annapolis) 
in  Acadia  (now  Nova  Scotia)  he  built  a  fort  and  planted  a  settle- 
ment, which,  for  ten  years,  continued  to  increase  and  prosper,  but 
which,  iu  1614,  was  attacked  by  a  force  from  Virginia,  under  Sir 
Samuel  Argall,  and  was  broken  up.    (See  Acadia.) 


CHAMPLAIN   FOUNDS  QUEBEC:   MAKK3   WAR  ON  THE   IROQUOIS: 
FOUNDS  MONTREAL.  —  EXPEDITIONS  WITH   THE  HURONS. — HIS 

DISCOURAGEMENTS, — INCONSIDERABLE  SETTLEMENTS. 

CANADA    TAKEN    BY    THE    ENGLISH,  —  RESTORED. — 

THE     COMPANY     OP     NEW     PRANCE. — DEATH     OP 

CHAMPLAIN:     HIS    CHARACTER. 

In  1608,  Champlain,  dispatched  from  France  with  two  vessels,  to 
trade  at  Tadousac,  took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  found  a 
pernmucnt  colony  on  the  shores  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  After  a  care- 
ful survey  of  its  sloies,  he  selected  for  the  site  of  his  settlement  that 
t!|ileiulid  headland,  known,  even  at  that  early  day,  as  Quebec,  the 


m 


Pfi^iK^sri 


mmm 


S'n 


TUE  PKOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UI8T0BY. 


,; 


same  where  Cartier  had  passed  his  first  winter.  This  was  in  ^ly 
and  during  the  brief  remainder  of  a  Canadian  summer,  buildings 
were  erected,  and  preparations  were  made  for  the  long  winter. 
When  the  spring  came  on,  Ghamplain,  desirous  of  effecting  fresn 
exploration,  and  little  scrupulous  in  his  choice  of  means,  accompa- 
nied a  party  of  Algonquins,  with  whom  he  had  made  friends,  on  a 
hostile  expedition  against  their  ancient  enemies,  the  Iroquois.  Pass- 
ing up  the  St.  Lawrence,  they  reached  a  river  running  from  the 
south,  and  by  this  outlet  made  their  way  to  that  beautiful  lake  which 
still  bears  the  name  of  its  first  Eu'v  oean  discoverer — the  Ghamplain. 
Near  the  soutbem  extremity  of  this  lake  they  entered  a  smaller  one 
DOW  known  af.  Lake  George,  and  on  its  banks  had  a  desperate  fight 
with  some  two  hundred  of  the  Iroquois,  who  were  entrenched  in  a 
rude  fort.  The  fire-arms  and  the  skillful  manoeuvres  of  the  French 
secured  the  victory  to  their  allies;  a  number  of  the  ene:iy  were 
killed,  and  ten  or  twelve  were  taken  prisoners;  the  latter,  despite 
the  remonstranoes  of  Ghamplain,  were  put  to  death  with  the  cruel 
tortures  customarily  practised  among  these  barbarous  tribes. 

Returning  to  France,  the  adventurer  was  received  with  much 
favour  by  Henry  IV.,  and  in  the  following  year  (1610)  again  sailed 
for  the  St.  Lawrence,  reaching  the  mouth  of  the  Saguenay  in  the 
wonderfully  brief  passage,  considering  the  age,  of  eighteen  days. 
Quebec  was  in  a  prosperous  condition,  and  he  now  laid  the  four  la- 
tion  of  a  small  settlement  at  Montreal — destined,  in  time,  to  become 
one  of  the  fairest  cities  in  America.  Strangely  regardless  of  princi- 
ple or  policy,  he  continued  his  system  of  acc6mpanying  and  assist- 
ing the  savages  in  their  wars  with  the  Iroquois,  thus  incurring  for 
himself  and  his  people  the  deadly  enmity  of  those  powerful  tribes— 
an  enmity  fated,  at  a  future  day,  to  result  almost  in  the  ruin  of  the 
colonies  planted  with  such  toil  and  perseverance.  Having  once 
more  gone  to  France,  and  incorporated  a  company  to  further  his 
plans  of  colonization,  he  returned  to  Montreal,  where  the  Ilurons 
and  other  Indian  allies  of  the  French  were  preparing  for  a  grand 
expedition  against  their  ancient  enemies.  As  usual,  he  joined  them; 
but  this  time  the  exj)edition  was  defeated,  and  the  allies  retreated 
in  disgrace,  carrying  off  their  wounded,  among  whom  the  French- 
man was  one,  in  a  singular  manner.  "Their  bodies  were  bent  into  a 
circular  form,  bound  with  cords,  and  thrown  into  a  basket,  where 
they  la}'  like  infants  in  swaddling  clothes,  unable  to  stir  hand  or 
loot.     Ghamplain  feelingly  describes  the  agonies  he  endured  while 


THE   FRENCH   IN  AMEBICA. 


;>95 


being  carried  twenty-five  or  thirty  leagues  in  this  position ;  on  being 
relieved  from  which,  he  felt  as  if  he  had  come  out  of  a  dungeon." 
Despite  his  misfortunes,  he  explored,  on  this  expedition,  a  great 
extent  of  country,  even  reaching  Lake  Nipissing  and  Lake  Huron. 
la  all  these  arduous  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  new  province,  during 
which  ho  repeatedly  wont  to  France,  he  obtained  little  aid  in  prose- 
cution of  his  schemes,  either  from  the  crown  or  the  company ;  and 
bis  utmost  energies,  at  times,  were  required  to  prevent  the  emigrants 
from  breaking  up  their  settlements,  and  relinquishing  altogether  the 
attempt  to  colonize  these  inclement  regions. 

Seligious  dissensions  between  the  Catholics  and  Huguenots  soon 
sprung  lip  iu  the  little  community,  and  Champlain,  a  zealous.  Boman- 
ist,  with  grief  saw  himself  compelled  by  policy  to  allow  some  tolera- 
tion to  the  latter.  The  Iroquois,  in  1621,  to  revenge  past  injuries, 
sent  three  strong  war  parties  against  the  French  and  Hurons,  on  the 
latter  of  whom  they  inflicted  a  considerable  massacre.  A  stone  fort 
was  built  for  the  protection  of  Quebec,  which,  at  this  time,  had  only 
filly  iuhabitautfi,  but  which  soon  received  a  considerable  addition 
of  emigrants.  In  1627,  the  "Company  of  New  France,"  chartered 
under  the  auspices  of  the  famous  Richelieu,  went  into  operation,  with 
full  dominion  and  sovereignty  (saving  certain  feudal  acknowledg- 
meuta  to  the  crown)  over  nearly  all  the  vast  regions  now  known  as 
British  America,  with  the  right  to  confer  titles  of  a  high  order,  and 
to  select  governors  and  other  officers  to  rule  their  provinces.  This 
powerful  corporation,  aided  by  gifls  from  the  crown,  undertook  that, 
by  the  year  16-13,  six  thousand  additional  colonists  should  be  trans- 
ported to  the  province;  but  its  attempts  were  thwarted  by  misfor- 
tune, and  in  1629,  the  little  settlement  of  Quebec  was  token  by 
an  English  force,  and  all  Canada  was  compelled  to  submit  to  the 
victors.  In  1632,  by  the  treiity  of  St.  Gcrmains,  it  was  restored  to 
France,  little  value  at  that  time  being  attached  by  either  nation  to 
the  feeble  .settlenienta  thinly  scattered  over  that  inhospitable  region, 
"  At  this  period,  the  fort  of  Quebec,  surrounded  by  a  score  of  hastily- 
built  dwellings  and  barracks,  some  poor  huts  on  the  island  of  Mon- 
treal, the  like  at  Three  llivers  tiiid  Tadousiic,  and  a  few  fishermen's 
log-houses  elsewhere  on  the  bunks  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  were  the 
only  fruits  of  tlic  discoveries  of  Yerrazano,  Jacques  Cartier,  ilober- 
val,  and  Champlain,  the  great  outlay  of  La  lloclie  and  Do  Monts, 
tiiid  the  toils  ami  siiflerings  of  their  followers  for  nearly  a  century." 

Under  the  active  administrutiou  of  Cardinal  Kichelieu,  however, 


!:ii 


III 

ii 


800 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


I 


eflicicnt  means  had  been  taken  to  promote  the  proaperitj  of  the 
recovered  colony;  and  the  company,  whose  operations  had  been 
suspended  by  the  late  disasters,  in  the  following  year  (1683)  again 
placed  Champlain  in  command  of  the  colonies,  and  dispatched  an 
expedition,  carrying  more  property,  it  was  supposed,  than  the  entire 
province  at  that  time  contained.  This  expedition  increased  the 
population,  and  materially  promoted  the  prosperity  of  New  France- 
but  the  death  of  Champlain,  which  took  place  soon  afler,  was  a 
severe  blow  to  the  infant  colony.  "He  died  in  1685,  leaving  a  high 
renown  for  courage,  for  patient  and  indefatigable  industry,  and  for 
fervent  piety — the  latter,  it  seems  to  us,  hardly  deserved,  consider- 
ing his  unpiinciplpd  interference  in  Indian  warfare,  and  his  bigoted 
exclusion  of  Protestant  settlers  from  the  forlorn  refuge  of  the  Cana- 
dian wilderness.  He  certainly  bequeathed  to  the  state  which  he  had 
founded  with  such  j  nin?  ind  perseverance,  a  deep  and  deadly  native 
hostility,  destined  to  involve  it,  at  a  later  period,  in  almost  total 
destruction,"  "To  him,  however,"  says  an  elegant  author,*  "belongs 
the  glory  of  planting  Christianity  and  civilization  among  the  snows 
of  these  northern  forests;  during  his  life,  indeed,  a  feeble  germ;  but, 
sheltered  by  his  vigorous  arm — nursed  by  his  tender  care — the  root 
struck  deep.  And  now  a  million  and  a  half  of  Christian  people 
dwell  in  peace  and  plenty  upon  that  magnificent  territory,  which 
his  zeal  and  wisdom  first  redeemed  from  the  desolation  of  the 
wilderness." 

*  Warbarton — ^"Conquest  of  CaiumIii.** 


THE   FBENCa   IN    AMERICA 


897 


CrrADTPUTTr 
ililrxjljiiiY. 

ADMINISTRATION   OF  MONTMAONY. — UNPR08PBR0U8  CONDITION 
OF  THE  PROVINCE.  —  D'AROBNSON.  —  D'ATANOOUR. — TRI- 
UMPHS   OF     THE     IROQUOIS.  —  EARTHQUAKE. — REIN- 
FORCEMENTS   FROM  'FRANCE. — MESBT,  —  TRACT. — DE 
COURCELLES. — THE  COMTB    DE    PRONTENAC:    HIS 
CHARACTER. — TURBULENT   ADMINISTRATION. — 
DE   LA  BARRE:   HIS  EXPEDITION   AGAINST  THE 
IROQUOIS:    ITS    FAILURE. — CBLEBRATBD 
SPEECH  OF  OARANOULA.  —  MAGNANIMOUS 
CONDUCT    OF    THE    IROQUOIS. 

MoNTMAGNY,  the  successor  of  Champlain  in  the  government  of 
Canada,  wanting  in  the  enthusiasm  and  experience  of  that  famous 
commander,  was  unable  efficiently  to  promote  the  increase  and  pros- 
perity of  the  province.  The  foundation  of  the  college  of  the  Jesuits 
and  of  other  religious  establishments,  which,  prompted  by  the  pious 
zeal  of  French  ecclesiastics  and  of  ladies  of  rank,  took  place  about 
thi.s  time,  were  the  most  important  events  which  distinguished  tlio 
early  years  of  his  administration.  The  company,  after  the  death  of 
Champlain,  did  nothing  towards  settling  or  cultivating  the  country, 
but  confined  themselves  to  the  more  profitable  trade  in  furs,  and 
erected  forts  only  for  the  convenience  and  protection  of  that  enter- 
prise. The  affuira  of  the  colony  languished,  and  tiie  Iroquois,  with 
very  natural  enmity,  continued  to  harass  the  weaker  settlements. 
Montreal,  it  is  said,  would  have  been  completely  destroyed  or  aban- 
doned, but  for  the  timely  arrival,  in  1647,  of  an  hundred  emigrants 
from  France,  under  M.  D'Aillebout. 

When,  in  1658,  the  Marquis  J'Argenson  arrived  in  Canada  as 
governor-general,  the  condition  of  that  province  was  miserable  in 
tlie  extreme.  Neglected  by  the  company,  its  prosperity  had  con- 
tinued to  decline,  even  the  fur-trade  becoming  almost  extinct;  and 
the  Iroquois,  having  wreaked  terrible  vengeance  on  their  ancient 
foes,  the  Ilurons  and  Algonquins,  seemed  on  the  point  of  overpow- 
ering the  French  altogether.  A  great  number  of  settlers  were  mas- 
sacred by  them  at  Montreal,  and  Quebec  itself,  surrounded  by  a 
force  of  several  hundred  warriors,  was  nearly  in  a  state  of  actual 


14 


898 


THE  rKOl'LE'B   BOOK   OF  HISTORY. 


siege.  To  D'Argenflon,  in  1001,  succeeded  tljo  Burou  D'Avangour 
a  man  of  stern,  inflexil)le  character,  whose  prompt  action  saved  the 
Hclllementa  from  destruction.  His  urgent  representations  to  Louia 
XIV.  of  the  importance  of  the  province  and  ita  defenceless  condition 
induced  that  sovereign  to  dispatch  a  force  of  four  hundred  men  for 
iti«  protection — the  timely  arrival  of  which  inspired  fresh  hope  and 
courage  in  the  almost  desp       ng  colonists. 

In  tlje  year  1663,  a  tremendous  earthquake,  continuing  at  inter- 
vals for  the  space  of  six  months,  spread  dismay  among  the  settlers 
and  extraordinary  convulsions  of  the  earth  and  the  rivers  are  said 
to  have  taken  place.  •  The  St.  Lawrence,  for  a  huiulred  and  thirty 
miloH,  was  discolored  an«l  impregnated  with  sulphurous  matter. 

The  company  of  New  France,  by  their  mismanagement  and  imbe- 
cility, having  reduced  the  colony  to  thr  lowest  state,  in  16(54  sur- 
rendored  their  charter,  which  was  iransferred  to  another  almost 
equally  incapable  a.s80ciation,  the  Company  of  the  West  Indies, 
The  Baron  d'Avangour,  recalled  at  jiis  own  roquest,  was  replaced 
by  M.  de  Mesey,  who,  quarrelling  with  the  bishop  of  the  province 
Wiw  also  deposed,  and  the  Marquis  de  Tracy,  for  some  time  viceroy 
over  the  French  possea^ion.s  in  America,  in  June,  1665,  arrived  in 
Canada  from  the  West  Indies,  as  governor  in  hi.s  stead.  The  arrival 
of  a  regiment  of  French  soldier',  provided  for  the  defence  of  the 
colony,  enabled  him  to  take  rnorc  eflicii-nt  means  of  defence  against 
the  Iroquois,  and  three  forts  were  erected  on  the  river  Kichelitu 
(Sorel  or  St.  John's)  to  check  the  incursions  which  they  habitually 
made  by  that  passage  from  Lake  Champlain.  Nevertheles.s,  by  othtr 
routes  they  renewed  their  ravages  with  such  fury,  that  all  the  vigi- 
lance of  the  governor  and  all  the  force  of  the  colony  was  required 
to  protect  it  from  destruction.  Having  provided  in  the  best  manner 
|>088ible  for  its  defence,  in  1668  he  returned  to  France,  leaving  .M. 
de  Courcelles  governor  in  his  stead. 

Many  of  the  military  officers,  having  received  grants  of  land,  with 
seignorial  rights,  settled  in  the  provinde,  and  many  of  the  soldiers 
were  also  distributed  among  the  settlements,  adding  materially  to 
the  strength  of  the  inhabitants.  Three  hundred  courtesans,  dis- 
patched from  France,  were  all  disposed  of  in  marriage  within  a  fort- 
night after  their  arrival;  and  much  encouragement  was  given  by 
the  government  to  the  formation  of  families  and  the  incn>ase  of  a 
legitimate  i>opulation.  Daring  the  administration  of  Courcelles 
much  of  Canada  was  explored;  and  the  original  inhabitant.s,  by  the 


THE  FKKNCII  IN   AMERICA. 


800 


ravages  of  Bmall-pox  and  the  introduction  of  ardent  spirits,  wcro 
terribly  diminished  in  number.  His  influence  had  been  wisely  and 
humanely  exerted  to  check  hostilities  among  the  Indians,  and  tliu 
result  had  boon  favourable  to  the  peace  of  the  colony  itself. 

The  Count  do  Froutenac,  who,  in  1672,  succeeded  Do  Courcellcs, 
built,  in  tliu  same  year,  the  important  fort  which  bore  his  name,  on 
the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Kingston.  He  was  an  able  soldier, 
oiul  a  man  of  high  qualities;  but  violent  and  obstinate  in  the  prose- 
cution of  his  plans.  lie  was  soon  involved  in  dispute  with  the 
clergy  and  with  the  inferior  oflicers  of  the  colony,  and  resorted  to 
cxtromo  mea-surea  to  enforce  obedience.  "The  inten<lant-general, 
M.  do  Chezneau,  having  neglected  some  orders,  was  imprisoned;  the 
procureur-general  was  exiled;  the  governor  of  Montreal  was  put 
under  arrest;  and  the  Abb6  de  Sallguac  Fenelon,  at  that  time  in 
Canada,  superintending  the  seminary  t)f  St  Sulpiciu  *  at  Montreal, 
was  imprisoned,  under  pretence  of  having  preachc  1  against  M.  de 
Frontenac."  In  one  point  of  controversy,  the  clergy,  to  th  it  hon- 
our, were  in  the  right — tliat  respecting,-  the  traffic  of  Vrij.idy  for 
furs  with  the  savages,  which  the  f^jovernor  insisted  on  continuing, 
but  which,  through  the  influence  of  the  bishoj ,  i,  ^s  finally  sup- 
pressed by  an  order  from  the  king.  After  renu  .ning  in  office  for 
ten  years,  this  able  and  patriotic,  but  too  unscrupulous  man,  was 
recalled  to  France.  During  his  adrniiii.stration,  considerable  pro- 
gress was  made  in  discovery  and  .settlement,  and,  in  especial,  the 
wonderful  expeditions  of  Marquette  and  La  Salle  resulted  in  the 
opening  to  mankind  of  a  region  the  most  important  in  North 
America.     (See  Louisiana.) 

Soon  after  the  accession  of  M.  do  la  Barre,  who  was  next  ap- 
pointed governor,  Indian  hostilities,  of  a  most  serious  nature,  were 
renewed.  The  English,  anxious  to  engross  the  trade  in  furs,  had 
formed  an  alliance  with  the  Iroquoii^  ■.•■  Five  Nations,  and  the  rivalry 
between  the  colonial  agents  involve*.',  ihe  French  in  new  difficulty 
with  their  ancient  foes.  That  powerful  confederacy  had  recom- 
menced hostilities,  by  plundering  the  French  traders  who  were  sup- 
plying the  rival  tribes  with  arms,  and  had  made  such  formidable 
preparations,  that  the  destruction  of  the  French  settlements  (at  this 
time  numbering  only  nine  thousand  inhabitants)  seemed  far  from 
improbable.  To  avert  or  anticipate  the  threatened  evil,  the  governor, 
with  a  force  of  a  thousand  men,  marched  toward  their  country,  at  tlu; 
same  time,  however,  making  overtures  of  peace  to  the  hostile  con- 


'DM 


S>*;, 


''.'I-     ' 


T 

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il  f1  -K'     ' 

ill. 

''■■■^W^^  '■  ■  '■ 

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'M '      ' 

I 


•100 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OP  HISTORY. 


fcderacy.  Sickness  broke  out  among  his  troops,  and  rendered  tho 
command  unfit  for  serv'oe;  yet,  when  he  met  Garangula,  the  old 
sachem  of  the  Onondagas,  with  other  deputies  from  the  Five  Nations 
at  Kaihoage,  on  Lake  Ontario,  where  a  conference  had  been  an- 
pointed,  he  assumed  a  lofty  and  exacting  tone.  Recapitulating  the 
injuries  received  by  the  French,  he  demanded  satisfaction,  and 
threatened  the  destruction  of  the  offending  tribes,  in  event  of  refusal. 
The  speech  of  the  old  chief,  in  reply,  is  justly  considered — for  spirit 
for  satire,  and  forcible  expression — as  one  of  the  most  striking  speci- 
mens of  Indian  eloquence.  Having  heard  the  Frenchman  to  an  end 
he  took  two  or  three  turns  about  the  apartment,  then  stood  before 
the  governor,  and,  after  a  courteous  and  formal  preamble,  addressed 
him  thus: 

"  Yonondio,*  you  must  have  believed,  when  you  left  Quebec,  that 
the  sun  had  burnt  up  all  the  forests  which  render  our  country  inac- 
cessible to  the  French,  or  that  the  lakes  had  so  far  overflowed  the 
banks,  that  they  had  surrounded  our  castles,  and  that  it  was  impos- 
sible for  us  to  get  out  of  them.  Yes,  surely  you  must  have  dreamed 
so,  and  the  curiosity  of  seeing  so  great  a  wonder  has  brought  you  so 
far.  Now  you  are  undeceived,  since  I,  and  the  warriors  here  present, 
are  come  to  assure  you  that  the  Senecas,  Cayugas,  Onondagas,  Onei- 
das,  and  Mohawks  are  yet  alive.  I  thank  you  in  their  name  for 
bringing  back  into  their  country  the  calumet  which  your  predecessor 
received  from  their  hands.  It  was  happy  for  you  that  you  left 
under  ground  that  murdering  hatchet  which  has  been  so  often  dyed 
in  the  blood  of  the  French.  '    • 

"llear,  Yonondio:  I  do  not  sleep;  I  have  my  eyes  open;  and  the 
sun  which  enlightens  ine,  discovers  to  me  a  great  captain,  at  the 
head  of  a  company  of  soldiers,  who  speaks  as  if  he  were  dreaming. 
He  says  that  he  only  came  to  the  lake  to  smoke  on  the  great  calumet 
with  the  Onoiidagius,  But  Garangula  says,  that  he  sees  the  contrary; 
that  it  was  to  knock  them  on  the  head,  if  sickness  bad  not  weakened 
the  arms  of  tlie  French.  I  see  Yonondio  raving  in  a  camp  of  sick 
men,  whose  lives  the  Great  Spirit  has  saved  by  inflicting  this  sick- 
ness upon  them. 

"Hear,  Yonondio:  our  women  had  taken  their  clubs,  our  children 
and  old  men  hud  carried  their  bows  and  arrows  into  the  heart  of  your 
camp,  if  our  warriors  had  not  disarmed  them  and  kept  them  back, 

'*  A  term  •pplied  by  the  Indiniii  to  the  governor  of  the  French,  m  that  of  Corker 
to  tile  gu\  ernur  of  the  Eiigli»h. 


THE   FKENCH   IN    AMERICA. 


401 


when  your  messenger,  Akouessan,  came  to  our  castles.    It  is  done, 
and  I  have  said  it. 

"  Hear,  Yonondio :  wo  plundered  none  of  the  French,  but  tho&o 
that  carried  arms,  powder  and  ball  to  the  Twightwies  and  Chicta- 
ghicks,  because  those  arms  might  have  cost  us  our  lives.  Herein 
we  follow  the  example  of  the  Jesuits,  who  break  all  the  kegs  of 
rum  brought  to  our  castles,  lest  the  drunken  Inciians  should  knock 
them  on  the  head.  Our  warriors  have  not  beaver  enough  to  pay  for 
all  those  arms  that  they  have  taken,  and  our  old  men  are  not  afraid 
of  the  war.     This  belt  preserves  my  words."* 

In  the  same  lofty  strain  he  asserted  the  independence  of  his  nation, 
and  the  propriety  of  keeping  their  f^nemies  in  check;  concluding, 
however,  by  presenting  the  governor  a  gift  of  beaver  skins,  and 
inviting  all  present  to  an  entertainment.  Some  reparation  was  finally 
promised,  but  only  on  condition  that  the  French  forces  should  be 
immediately  withdrawn;  an  1  with  this  unsatisfactory  termmation  of 
his  expedition,  the  governor  was  compelled  to  return.  The  English, 
it  is  said,  reproached  their  allies  for  not  having  pushed  the  war, 
finding  the  enemy  at  such  a  di.sad vantage;  but  that  high-spirited 
people,  with  equal  boldness  and  magnanimity,  replied,  "Yonondio 
is  our  father,  and  Corlaer"  (meaning  the  governor  of  New  York) 
"our  brother;  but  neither  of  them  is  our  master.  He  who  created 
the  world,  gave  us  the  land  which  we  occupy;  we  are  free;  we 
respect  both;  but  neither  has  a  right  to  command  us;  a7id  no  person 
ought  to  take  offence  Viat  we  prevent  the  earth  from  being  troubled."  In 
this  affair,  the  demeanour  and  attitude  of  the  native  tribes  appear  to 
the  highest  advantage  in  contrast  with  those  of  the  Europeans  of 
either  nation.  Shrewdness,  national  spirit,  courage  and  moderation 
distinguished  their  conduct  of  the  whole  transaction. 

*  At  the  end  of  each  heading  or  section  of  a  set  Indian  oration,  it  was  customary 
for  the  speaker  to  present  u  belt  of  wampum,  to  be  kept  in  perpetual  remembrance 
of  that  portion. 

Vol.  Ill— 26 


•v.:-',, 


-    11       [I    iW     I     — 


II 


402  ^^^  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UISTOKY. 


DE  NONVIILE  QOTKRNOR.  —  HIS  TREACHERY  TO  THE  IROQUOIS 

RENEWED  HOSTILITIES.  —  TREATY  OP  PEACE. — BROKEN 

BY   TREACHERY — EXTRAORDINARY   STRATAGEM    OP    LE 

EAT,  A   HURON   CHIEF. TERRIBLE   INVASION   BY  THE 

IROQUOIS,  AND  MASSACRE  OP   THE   FRENCH — DES- 
PERATE CONDITION  OF  THE  COLONY. 

Not  long  after  the  expedition  of  La  Barre,  and  its  disastrous 
result,  the  Marquis  de  Nonville,  with  a  strong  reinforcement,  arrived 
in  Canada  as  governor-general.  With  two  thousand  troops  he  pro- 
ceeded to  Fort  Cataraqui,  or  Frontenac,  and  at  once  renewed  the 
quarrel  with  the  Iroquois,  on  the  frivolous  pretext  that  they  stood  in 
the  way  of  the  conversion  of  the  other  American  tribes.  Louis  XIV. 
had  sent  a  cruel  and  mean-souled  request  for  a  number  of  warriors  of 
this  redoubted  nation  as  slaves  to  man  his  galleys;  and  De  Nonville 
the  fitting  agent  of  such  a  master,  under  various  pretences,  induced 
a  number  of  the  Iroquois  chiefs  to  meet  him  at  Fort  Frontenac 
where  they  were  immediately  seized,  loaded  with  irons,  and  dispatelied 
to  France.  This  treacherous  deed,  the  eternal  dishonour  of  all  con- 
cerned in  it,  again  lit  up  the  flaoe  .)f  revenge  among  the  injured 
nation ;  the  country  was  ravaged  around  the  fort,  and  a  French  vessel 
on  Lake  Ontario,  laden  with  stores  and  provisions,  was  captured  by 
a  great  fleet  of  canoes.  The  governor,  with  a  force  of  three  tlxjusand 
French  and  Indians,  inarched  into  the  Seneca  country,  but  was  enabled 
to  bring  the  enemy  into  action  only  once,  when,  owing  to  the  inferior- 
ity of  their  number,  they  were  defeated.  Nevertheless,  a  fort  which 
the  governor  had  erected  at  Niagara,  was  destroyed,  and  Frontenac 
itself  was  besieged.  Ere  long,  twelve  hundred  warriors  were  within 
siiort  distance  of  Montreal,  and,  ajiprehending  the  iininidiate 
destruction  of  that  settlement,  the  false-hearted  governor  listened  to 
overtures  for  peace.  The  Iroquois  deputies,  protecteil  by  five  liun- 
dreil  warriors,  iu«sumed  a  lofly  tone;  and  De  Nonville,  forced  to 
f'oni]dy  with  tlu-ir  onnditions,  a;;rood  to  sond  at  once  for  thoir  chiefs 
who  had  Ix'cn  shijiped  to  France,  aii<l  were  then  chained  tu  the  gal 
i<.ys  of  Louis  XIV.     An  extraordinary  piece  of  treachery  and  cmi- 


THE  FBENCH  IN  AMERICA. 


408 


ning,  devised  by  a  chief  of  the  Hurons,  prevented  this  treaty  from 
taking  effect,  and  renewed  all  the  horrors  of  savage  warfare. 

Adario  or  Kondiaronk,  also  called  Le  Rat  (the  Rat)  was  among  the 
first  of  the  diminished  tribe  of  the  Hurons,  both  in  war  and  council ; 
the  ruling  passion  of  his  soul  was  hatred  to  the  Iroquois,  the  ancient 
enemies  and  formerly  almost  the  exterminators  of  his  race.  In  this 
war,  at  the  request  of  Nonville,  he  had  set  forth,  with  a  hundred 
warriors,  to  inflict  some  notable  vengeance  on  his  hereditary  foes; 
but  stopping  at  Frontenac,  had  learned  of  the  treaty.  Though  mad- 
dened at  the  idea  of  losing  his  anticipated  revenge,  he  suppressed 
all  emotion,  and  quitted  the  fort,  apparently  to  return  to  his  own 
country.  A  most  deadly  scheme  of  incendiary  treason  was  hatching 
in  his  mind,  which,  'vith  all  its  revolting  details  of  cruelty,  duplicity, 
and  perfidy,  he  carried  into  effect  with  the  most  singular  boldness 
and  success. 

"Instead  of  returning  to  Makilimakinak,"  relates  Mr.  McGregor," 
"he  proceeded  with  his  warriors  to  the  cascades,  which  are  about 
thirty  miles  above  Montreal,  and  where  he  knew  the  Iroquois  deputies, 
with  '^heir  hostages,  would  pass.  Here  he  remained  in  ambush, 
waiting  for  the  deputies,  who  arrived  in  a  few  days,  accompanied  by 
forty  young  men.  He  surprised  them  as  they  landed  from  their 
canoes,  killed  several,  and  made  the  remainder  prisoners.  He  then 
told  the  captives  that  he  was  directed  by  the  governor  to  occupy  that 
position,  in  order  to  intercept  a  party  of  Iroquois  warriors,  who  were 
to  advance  by  that  route  to  plunder  the  French  settlements,  and  that 
he  must  immediately  conduct  them  as  prisoners  to  Montreal,  where 
there  was  not  the  least  hope  of  mercy  for  them.  The  deputies,  amazed 
at  this  intelligence,  and  their  passions  having  been  aggravated  to  fury 
hy  recollecting  that  their  chiefs  were  not  yet  sent  back  from  Francr*. 
considered  the  conduct  of  M.  de  Nonville,  and  especially  this  i-  t 
apparent  act  of  infamous  perfidy,  more  horrible  than  all  that  thfir 
imagination  had  attributed  to  demons.  They  then  related  the  object 
of  their  mission  to  Le  Rat,  who  feigned  astonishment;  and  after 
remaining  a  short  time  silent,  and  seeming  affected  with  sorrow, 
assumed  a  ferocious  air  and  tone,  and  declaimed,  with  all  the  force 
and  ingenuity  of  his  eloquence,  against  M.  de  Nonville,  for  having 
made  him  the  instrument  of  the  most  diaV)olical  trcacliery.  Tie  then 
released  the  prisoners,  and  told  them  to  return  and  tell  their  tribes 
that  the  governor  of  the  French  had  made  him  engage  in  a  deed  so 
horribly  atrocious,  that  he  should  never  rest  till  he  had  satiated  his 


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u 


■iOl 


TUE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


revenge  by  the  destruction  of  the  French  settlements.  The  Iroquois 
believed  Le  Rat;  and  his  apparent  clemenc}'  in  setting  them  at  hb- 
erty  so  fully  persuaded  them  cf  his  sincerity,  that  they  assured  him 
that  the  Five  Nations  would  immediately  ratify  such  terms  of  peace 
with  the  Ilurous  as  they  might  then  agree  upon.  He  then  gave  them 
fusils,  powder,  and  ball,  to  defend  them  on  their  way  back;  and 
under  the  pretence  of  replacing  one  man  whom  he  had  lost  in  attack- 
ing the  Iroquois,  he  retained  an  Indian  of  the  Chouanan  tribe,  with 
whom  he  returned  to  Makilimakinak. 

"  This  unfortunate  prisoner,  who  believed  himself  safe,  from  Le 
Rat  telling  the  Iroquois  that  he  would  retain  him  as  an  adopted  son 
was  delivered  to  the  French  commandant  of  that  post,  who  Wfus  still 
ignorant  of  the  proceedings  of  M.  de  Nonville,  and  who,  through 
the  statements  made  by  Le  Rat,  condemned  the  unhappy  wretch  to 
be  shot.  , 

"Le  Rat  had  an  old  Iroquois  slave,  for  a  long  time  in  his  posses- 
sion, to  whom  he  afforded  the  opportunity  of  witnessing  the  execution 
of  his  adopted  countryman  by  the  French,  all  the  circumstances  of 
which,  however,-  he  carefully  concealed  from  him.  He  then  told 
the  Iroquois,  'I  now  give  you  your  liberty;  return  to  your  country, 
and  there  .spend  the  remainder  of  your  days  in  peace.  Relate  to 
your  people  the  barbarous  and  unjust  conduct  of  the  French,  who. 
while  they  are  amusing  your  nation  with  offers  of  peace,  seize  every 
opportunity  of  betraying  and  murdering  you;  and  that  all  my  per- 
sua.sion&  could  not  save  the  life  even  of  one  man  of  your  tribe,  whom 
I  adopted  to  replace  the  warrior  I  lost  at  the  cascades.' 

"The  Iroquois  returned  to  his  country,  and  related  what  he  had 
wiinesKcd,  together  with  all  that  Le  Rat  liad  told  him.  The  Iroquois 
warriors,  a.s  might  be  anticipated,  were  even  before  this  sufficiently 
exjisp.'rated ;  but  this  last  stroke  of  Le  Rat's  policy  made  their  very 
blood  boil  furiously  for  revenge;  yet  they  dissembled  their  feelings 
of  re.sc;ntment  so  (jompletely,  ttiat  M.  de  Nonville  (who  declared  that 
he  would  hang  Le  Rat  whenever  he  could  be  captured)  still  expected 
deputies  from  the  Iroquois  to  ratify  a  j)eace." 

These  deputies  presently  arrived  at  t'  island  of  Montreal  in  the 
.shape  of  twelve  hundred  warriors,  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  inflamed 
to  madne.s.s  by  fury  and  revenge.  All  the  house?  and  corn-fields  of 
the  settlement  were  burrunl;  men,  women,  and  children  were  ma-ssa- 
cred  indiscriminately;  a  hundred  regular  troops,  vrith  a  small  force 
of  Huron  allies,  were  defeat<?d  and  cut  to  pieces;  and  the  triumphant 


THE  FRENCH  IN   AMERICA. 


405 


enemy,  liaving  laid  waste  the  island  with  fire  and  sword,  and  having 
lost  only  three  of  their  number,  departed,  carrying  off  two  hundred 
prisoners,  reserved  for  death  and  torture.  Nearly  a  thousand  of  the 
French  are  said  to  have  perished  or  been  captured  iu  this  terrible 
invasion.  The  governor  found  it  impossible  to  disabuse  the  offended 
tribes  of  their  belief  in  his  treachery,  thus  reaping  in  full  the  bitter 
fruits  of  his  original  perfidy.  The  war  was  continued,  and  famine 
and  disease  were  added  to  the  calamities  of  the  French.  Fort  Niag- 
ara and  Fort  Frontenac  were  successively  abandoned  by  their  garri- 
sons, and  the  iinfortunate  colony,  devastated  by  pestilence,  involved  in 
war  with  the  English,  and  exposed  to  the  still  more  terrible  ravages 
of  Indian  hostility,  seemed  reduced  to  an  almost  desperate  condition. 


CEAPTEH   ?L 


RBAPPOINTMEyT  OP  M.  DE  PRONTENAC. — NEGOTIATIONS  WITH 

THE  IROQUOIS.  —  DESTRUCTION   OF    SCHENECTADY,    ETC. 

— UNSUCCISSFUL  EXPEDITION  OF  PHIPPS  AGAINST 

QUEBEC. —  RENEWED  WARS  WITH  THE  IROQUOIS. 

—  EXPEDITION  OF  FRONTENAC. 


**, .  :•!? 


In  this  extremity,  it  was  found  absolutely  indispensable,  that  a 
man  of  the  first  order  of  talents  should  be  placed  at  the  head  of 
affairs  in  Canada;  and  the  Count  de  Frontenac,  whose  former  ad- 
ministration, though  self-willed  and  arbitrarj'^,  had  been  marked  by 
enterprise,  energy,  and  policy,  waj  at  once  reinstated  in  the  office  of 
governor.  (1(589.)  He  brought  with  him  to  America  the  Iroquois 
chiefs,  so  treacherously  seized  by  his  pretV  "ssor,  and  such  was  the 
fa.scination  of  his  manners,  that  he  comply  .jly  won  their  friendship 
— Oareouhar('>,  the  principal  of  them,  ever  after  remaining  strongly 
attached  to  his  person.  By  the  advice  of  that  chief,  he  sent  four  of 
them  as  a  deputation  to  their  people,  with  overtures  of  peace ;  and 
the  friendly  advisei,  adding  a  persuasive  message,  announced  his 
intention  not  to  quit  the  count  till  tl    i.iTair  wa.s  satisfactoH';-  uijasted. 

But  the  hostile  nation,  embittered  by  ancient  wrong,  i  < ;  haughty 
with  recent  triumph,  replied  in  lofty  terms.  The  tree  of  peace,  thf^y 
said,  planted  by  Yonondio  (the  governor)  at  Frontenac,  had  ^' \'.;i 


^IM 


iud 


THE   PEOPLE'S    BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


witcreil  with  blood  and  polluted  by  treacbery.  l.et  atonement  be 
made,  and  all  the  captives  be  delivered,  and  he  might  then  "plant 
again  the  tree  of  peace,  but  not  in  the  samp  spot."  Hostilities  weie 
presently  renewed,  and  Frontenac,  parcciving  how  greatly  tbe  enemy 
were  encouraged  by  the  alliance  and  iri^^tign'.icn  of  the  Eij/iish,  (mnv 
at  open  v.;»r  with  France,)  resolved  to  inaL^  the  latter  f<o],  In  turn 
tL.;  terrois  of  savage  enmity.  An  e';,)xHt'0);.  wh'  h,  in  *dO^  i, , 
fitted  out  Irom  Quebec,  ccnsistrng  of  a  hundred  Fiench,  aud  a  force 
of  Indian  H'Hos,  surp:i,"^<i]  Schen*ktady,  i:j  jn  the  frontier  town  of  the 
New  York  struementt.  :Vixty-throe  of  the  inhabitants  were  massa- 
cred, and  the  it'st  carricti  prisoners  into  Ctx'  ada.  Thp  Eng  'sh  vil- 
lage of  Seineiitelf'  waa  alsc  surpiised  av^d  destroyed  by  another  party, 
an.]  the  Inxiuois  in  their  turn  r.'so  'net  with  a  K^wnai  defeat.  Tliia 
Hctiv'.;  and  cruel  policy  confifiued  the  Initer  in  -iicir  hi.tred,  but 
i'lcr.Jiscd  tlie  ildelity  and  attachment  of  tiio  Ilurons,  Ottawas,  aiul 
o  "icr  Inu,!iii  allies  of  the  French,  who  rejoiced  in  the  return  and  the 
Viarp  irit'asures  of  "their  great  father,"  the  count. 

In  th,5  same  year  (1690)  an  expedition  of  thirty-four  veaseLs,  fitted 
out  for  the  conquesc  of  Quebec,  under  Sir  William  Phipps,  sailed 
from  Bostvjn,  ,\nd,  having  captured  ull  the  ports  of  Newfoundland  and 
Acadia,  entered  the  St.  Lawrence.  On  learning  this  disastrous  news 
the  count  hastened  to  put  the  town  in  u  state  of  defence,  and  pereinp- 
turily  rejected  a  summons  to  surrender,  which  the  English  commander 
dispatched  in  adv  ance  of  his  fleet.  On  the  18th  of  October,  the  English 
sustaining  much  loss  fro^n  the  sharp  shooting  of  their  enemies,  dis- 
embarked near  the  river  St.  Charlci^,  not  far  from  the  city.  An  action 
ensued,  in  which  the  Jtasailauts  had  at  first  the  advantage,  but  wore 
finally  repulsed  by  the  garrison,  though  the  latter  were  very  inRrior 
l)oth  in  number  and  aj  j»ointments.  The  English  were  finally  com- 
pelled to  abandon  the  attemjjt,  anil  to  reembark,  leaving  their  cannon 
and  ammunition.  Despite  this  mortifyiru'  rjisuU,  there  is  little  doubt 
that  Phipps,  from  the  vast  superiority  oi  in  forces,  both  military  and 
naval,  by  u  well-directed  attack,  could  have  carried  the  place;  and  ll.c 
French,  it  is  said,  devoutly  returned  thanks  to  God  for  having,  by  a 
special  providence,  deprived  the  enemy  of  common  sense.  On  the 
23d  the  hostile  fleet  sailed  down  the  river,  and  seven  or  eight  of  the 
vesbels  were  soon  after  lost  in  the  Gu'   of  St  Lav/rence. 

The  Iroquois,  the  next  year,  renv    i  '.  hostilities,  landing,  wiii.  a 
thousand  warriors,  on  the  island  O'  treal,  burning  hou.-ies,  and 

c    .    iuK  off  prisoners,  whoni    iv"     ;    lo  death  with  cruel  torturea 


THE   FRENCH   IN    AMERICA. 


407 


I 


(.Hhor  \ncu'^ions  were  made,  and  in  the  skirmishes  which  ensued, 
many  lives  were  lost  on  both  sides — among  them,  those  of  several 
French  officers  of  high  rank;  and  the  J!*'rench  at  last,  by  way  of 
retaliation,  almost  vied  with  the  savages  in  the  crueltiea  inflicted 
on  their  captives.  Under  their  famous  chief,  Black  Kettle,  the  Iro- 
quois made  continual  forays  into  the  French  territory,  rendering 
seedtime  and  harvest  extremely  dangerous,  making  the  forts  the  only- 
places  of  safety,  and  boasting  that  their  enemies  should  have  no  rest 
except  in  the  grave.  Nevertheless,  Frontenac,  by  bis  unremitting 
vigilance  and  vigour,  so  far  kept  them  at  bay,  that,  in  1692,  the 
cultivation  of  the  land  was  resumed,  and  the  traffic  in  furs  once 
more  renewed. 

Two  years  afterwards,  the  hostile  tribes  made  overtures  of  peace, 
and  Oureouhar<5,  who  went  into  their  country,  returned  with  thirteen 
French  prisoners,  some  of  them  persons  of  distinction,  who  had  long 
been  held  in  captivity;  but  owing  to  the  insidious  interference  of 
the  English,  nothing  of  importance  was  finally  effected.  The  next 
year  (1695)  Fort  Cataraqui,  or  Frontenac,  which  had  been  aban- 
doned and  destroyed,  was  rebuilt,  and  in  June  of  1696,  the  French, 
having  mustered  all  their  forces — regular,  provincial,  and  Indian — 
made  a  grand  invasion  of  the  enemy's  country.  "De  Callierea 
commanded  the  left  wing,  the  Chevalier  de  Vaudreuil  the  right; 
while  the  count,  then  seventy-six  years  of  age,  was  carrifd  in  the 
centre  in  an  elbow-chair."  No  warriors,  however,  appeared  to  oppose 
the  march  of  this  formidable  force,  and  the  principal  fort  of  the  Five 
Nations  was  found  already  reduced  to  ashes.  Only  a  single  prisoner 
was  tfvken,  an  aged  warrif)r,  nearly  a  hundred  years  old,  whom  the 
French,  with  almosi;  inconceivable  barbarity,  delivered  to  their  sav- 
age allies  to  be  tortured  to  death.  With  unmoved  fortitude,  he 
ei  Jured  their  utmost  cruelty,  deriding  them  to  the  last  as  slaves  of 
a  conlcmptible  race  of  intruders.  Nothing  of  moment  was  accom- 
plished by  this  expedition,  the  Iroquois  retreating  without  offering 
battle  during  the  advance,  but  harassing  the  invaders  severely  on 
their  return. 

They  prosecuted  the  war  with  vigour,  but  with  their  allies,  the 
Engli.^V  met  with  repeated  disasters;  and  the  famous  Black  Kettle 
Nvas  >*uipri.sed  nnd  killed  while  hunting,  by  a  party  of  Algonquinsi. 
Negotiations  for  peace  v/cre  again  opened,  but  were  retarded  by  the 
death  of  Oureouhat.',  the  friendly  mediator  between  his  countrymen 
and  the  French.    Tko  peace  between  France  and  England,  concluded 


m  I 


403 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


in  1G98,  opened  the  way  for  a  more  successful  attempt,  and  a  jeal- 
ousy against  the  English,  lately  sprung  up  among  the  Iroquois 
furthered  the  advancement  of  the  project.  Just  as  the  negotiation 
wa.s  being  concluded,  on  the  29th  of  November,  1693,  the  Count  do 
Frontcnac  died,  at  the  age  of  soventy-eight  years,  twenty  of  which 
had  been  passed  in  Canada,  during  an  administration,  from  imj)ortant 
and  interesting  iiicidcnts,  the  most  memorable  in  the  history  of  that 
province.  Though  the  commencement  of  his  oflRcial  career  was 
marked  by  violence  and  self-will,  yet,  with  little  assistance  from  the 
mother-country,  he  had  preserved  a  colony  which  he  found  on  the 
verge  of  destruction,  and  ere  its  close  he  had  regained  the  confidenoo 
of  the  king,  the  respect  of  his  subordinates,  and  in  a  great  measure 
the  esteem  and  good-will  of  the  long-liostilc  savages. 


CHAFTEH    vll. 

DK  CAI.T  IKRKS.  —  PEACE  WITH  THE  IROQUOIS. — SINOFLAR  RESOLD- 

TIOX  OF  THE  FRENCH  PRISONERS. — DE  VAUDREUIL. EXPEIHTION 

AGAINST  CANAItA:    DISCONCERTED  BY  THE  IROQUOIS — UNSUC- 
CESSFUL EXPEDITION  OP  NICHOLSON. —  TREATY  OP  UTRECHT 

EXTENSION  AND  IMPROVEMENT  OP  THE  PROVINCE. — DE 

BBAUHARNOIS. —  PEACE  AND  PROSPERITY  OP  CANADA. 


'ki 


Tfik  office  of  governor,  left  vacant  by  the  death  of  Frontcnac,  was 
conferred  on  De  Calliorcs,  an  able  officer,  who  had  been  commandant 
of  \fontreal,  and  who  was  high  in  favour  vlth  the  Indian  allies  of 
the  French.  It  is  said  that  on  war  parties  and  other  solemn  occiusions 
he  would  dance  the  war-dance  with  them,  brandishing  his  hatchet, 
and  enacting  all  the  savage  pantomime  of  a  warrior  bound  against 
his  foes.  Ilis  administration  was  marked  by  excellent  prudence  and 
policy;  and  by  the  year  1700,  a  treaty  of  peace  was  finally  effected 
with  the  Five  Nations,  for  so  many  years  involved  in  such  deadly 
hostility  with  the  Canadians.  Numerous  prisoners,  on  both  sides, 
■A  ore  restored ;  but,  singularly  enough,  while  the  savages  sought 
their  forest-homes  with  eagerness,  "the  greater  part  of  the  French 
captives  were  found  to  have  contractfid  such  an  attachment  to  the 
wild  freedom  of  the  woods,  that  neither  tfce  commands  of  the  king 


U^-* 
m 


THE   FRENCH   IN    AMERIOA. 


409 


nor  the  teal's  and  entreaties  of  their  friends  conld  induce  them  to 
quit  the  savage  associates  with  whom  they  were  united." 

The  memorable  war  waged  by  Louis  XIV.  for  the  oppression  of 
Kurope,  and  its  disastrous  rosulta  to  the  French,  at  Blenhei-.n,  Ramil- 
lies,  and  other  defeats,  left  the  Canadian  colonies  dependant  on  their 
own  resources;  and  the  death  of  the  able  Do  Callieres,  which  occur- 
red in  1708,  was  a  misfortune  which  was  severely  felt.  "ITis  loss  was 
great  to  Canada;  and  although  his  powers  of  mind  wanted  the 
splendid  points  which  cast  such  brilliant  lustre  on  the  government 
of  M.  de  Frontenac,  yet,  from  his  great  excellence  of  character,  he 
was  beloved  and  respected  by  all;  and  having  never  violated  his 
word  to  the  Indians,  he  always  retained  their  implicit  confidence." 
The  Count  de  Vaudreuil,  agreeably  to  the  general  wish  of  the  people, 
was  appointed  to  succeed  him. 

The  English,  now  confident  of  expelling  their  rivals  from  Amer- 
ica, called  on  the  Iroquois  to  renew  hostilities;  but  that  high-spirited 
people,  with  honourable  feeling,  replied  that  when  they  made  a 
treaty,  they  did  so  to  keep  it ;  whereas  the  English  and  the  French 
seemed  to  do  so  only  for  the  purpose  of  breaking  it;  and  one  chief 
plainly  intimated  his  opinion  that  both  nations  were  drunk.  Some 
minor  hostile  operations  having  occurred,  the  English,  in  1709, 
dispatched  a  groat  force  from  New  York  to  effect  the  conquest  of 
Canada;  and  a  large  body  of  Iroquois  and  Michiginis,  according  to 
requisiton,  joined  the  expedition.  A  singular  story  is  trM  of  the 
artful  means  used  by  the  latter  to  disconcert  tlie  proj  jf  their 
allies.  A  force  dispatched  by  the  governor  to  interrupt  tlieir  pro- 
gress having  failed  to  accomplish  its  object,  and  the  English  being 
exultant  with  the  prospect  of  success,  an  Iroquois  chief  harangued 
his  countrymen  on  the  impolicy  of  permitting  the  latter  to  com- 
pletely overwhelm  their  enemies.  "  What  will  become  of  us,"  he 
said,  "if  we  destroy  the  French,  who  keep  the  English  in  check? 
The  latter  will  then  as-suredly  crush  us,  in  order  to  pos.sess  our  coun- 
try. Let  us  not,  therefore,  foolishly  bring  certain  ruin  on  ourselves, 
merely  to  indulge  our  passions  or  please  the  Engn  t  us  rather 

leave  the  French  and  English  in  a  position  which  will  make  either 
of  them  set  a  high  value  on  our  friendship." 

The  allied  army  halted  on  the  bank  of  a  small  river,  waiting  for 
artillery  and  ammunition,  and  the  Iroquois  busied  themselves  in 
hunting — ca.sting,  it  is  said,  the  skins  of  various  wild  beasts  into  the 
stream  above  the  encampment,  and  thus  poisoning  its  waters,  to  the 


J 'I 


m 


410 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


great  detriment  of  their  English  tonfcderntca.     This  story,  bo  often 

rcpcuted  by  historians,  may  fairly  be  doubted,  both  on  groiitids  of 

moral  probability  and  physical  possibility;  but  it  is  certain  that  a 

fatal  disease,  carrying  oft'  many  of  tho  whites,  appeared   in  the 

cair.i'  i   .  '   this,  with  the  want  ot  cordial  cooperation  amon^ 

thiir  Tiiui.u,  .luxiliarics,  caused  them  to  relinquish  the  enterprise 

uiid  iciurn  to  New  York.     A  second  expedition  of  a  formidable 

nature,  under  General  Nicholson,  in  1710,  wiis  dispatcher  a<'ainst 

Canada;  bit  that  commander,  learning  that  a  fleet  destined  to  aid 

his  operations  and  besiege  Quebec,  had  been  dispersed,  with  tin-  Iosh 

of  eij^ht  large  vessels,   s'.        mpelled  to  abandon  the  attempt  and 

retrace  his  sti])3.     The  treaty  of  uti-echt,  in  1713,  restored  peace  to 

the  contending  nations,  though  only  by  the  cession  to  the  En<fli.sh 

of  Acadia  and  Ncwluuiidland.     That  the  French,  unassisted  !>_)  tlie 

mother-country,  should  have  been  able  to  retain  their  possessions  in 

Canada  against  the  overwhelming  forces  of  their  allied  enemies,  is 

something  wonderful ;  for  there  were  at  this  time  only  four  thousand 

five  hundp'd  men,  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  sixty,  capah!.' 

of  bearing  arms,  in  the  whole  province;  while  the  efTective  force  of 

their  rivals  was  about  sixty  thousand.     This  improbable  result  was 

due  in  part  to  the  v.-xlour  and  genius  of  their  officers,  in  part  to  the 

incapacity  and  sliiggishnops  of  the  English  <    mmanders,  arid  etiU 

moie,  no  doubt,  to  the  sti  'ngth  of  their  position  and  the  inhospit;,    o 

nature  of  the  climate  and  tlie  country. 

During  the  remainder  of  I)e  Vaudreuil's  administration,  which 
lasted  till  his  death  in  1725,  the  colony  enjoyed  peace  and  prosper 
ity,  and  cultivation  ati(l  traffic  were  extended.  For  the  twenty-one 
years  in  whi<'h  ii"  held  oftlce,  he  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  his  fov- 
eminent  and  the  deserved  attachment  and  estocm  of  the  people 
coi  .'uitted  U^  his  char :re. 

1  ill'  Chevalier  de  .  .cauhani'  is,  who  succeeded  him,  also  held  tlie 
ofTice  of  governor  for  twenty  j't  ars — a  period  which,  under  his  active 
attcnt-  •■  o  tiie  interests  of  the  province,  w.-us  characterized  by 
markti!  improvement  :iiid  extension  of  colonization.  From  Quebec 
to  Montreal  the  St.  Lawrenw  waa  now  fringed  with  cultivated  farms; 
the  imp jrUint  fori-esa  u  Jrowri  Point,  with  others,  wa.s  erected  for  the 
protection  of  the  vin<  ■,  and  the  settlcnuMit  at  Detroit  was  raised  into 
some  importaiic  i'ln  nmity  in  whicli  the  French  had  .'lolong  been 
involved  with  v:;.  .oua  p.  sverful  tribes  of  Indians,  was  now  overcome: 
and  the  amiable  and  courteous  manners  of  the  former,  and  their  fie- 


PKENCH   IN   AMERICA. 


411 


qiicnt  intcrnKin '  »gt'.-  with  the  natives,  had  secured  th(!m  the  friend- 
ship and  alliance  even  of  the  nicea  whoso  enmity  and  whose  league 
with  the  English,  had  so  often  threatened  the  destruction  of  tho 
colony.  During  the  contests  with  the  latter,  which  distinguished 
much  of  the  first  part  of  tho  eighteenth  century,  Canada,  for  tho 
most  part,  cnjuyod  the  blessing  of  peace,  tho  struggle  being  princi- 
pally confined  to  Nova  Scotia.     (See  Acadia.) 


LuAPTEii    vlii, 

ENCROACHMENTS  OF  THE  FRENCH. — PORT   DU  QUESNE. — THE 
FRENCH    WAR  — EXPEDITION    OF    BRADUOCK:     HIS   DEFEAT   AND 
DEATH.  —  f     rONKI,   WASHINGTON.  —  EXPEDITION  AGAINST 
CROWN   Fii.NT.  —  DEFEAT  OP   DIESKAU.  —  THE   MARQUIS 
DE   MONTCALM:    HIS   SUCCESSES. — GREAT   EXERTIONS 
OP   THE   ENGLISH:   THEIR   SUPERIOR   FORCE. DE- 
FEAT   OF    ABERCROMBIE    AT    TICONDEROOA. 

A  RAPID  succession  of  governors,  after  the  death  of  Beauhamois, 
(1745,)  held  the  province  of  Ciuiadu,  the  Marquis  Du  Quesne,  the 
fourth  of  thorn,  arriving  in  1752.  This  able  and  ambitious  ofiicer  of 
the  crown  pursued  a  steady  system  of  encroachment  on  the  English 
colonies,  and  even  erected  a  ft)rt,  bearing  his  own  name,  within  tho 
confines  of  Virginia.  General  alarm  was  excited  among  the  rival 
settlements.  Canada,  by  this  time,  had  greatly  increiwed  in  popula- 
tion, the  inhabitants,  it  was  said,  numbering  ninety  thousand.  In 
1555  the  marquis  was  succeeded  by  Do  Vauiireuil  Cavagnal,  and 
the  same  year  the  last  and  most  memorable  of  the  Fronch-Ameiicau 
wars  broke  out.  The  unfortunate  Genc-ul  Braddock,  a  man  of 
great  energy  and  bravery,  but  obstinate  and  wrong-headed,  at  the 
head  of  twenty-two  hundred  regular  and  provu;uial  troops,  set  forth 
on  au  expedition  against  the  French  on  the  Ohio.  The  baggage 
and  artillery  being  delayed  by  the  roughness  of  the  country,  ho 
pushed  a'lead  with  thirteen  hundred  picked  men,  despising  tho 
warnings  f  danger  which  he  received  from  those  better  acquainted 
with  the  country  and  the  system  of  warfare.  He  had  approached 
within  five  miles  of  Fort  Du   Quesne,  and  was  just  crossing  tho 


•112 


'111  K   PEOPLE'S    BOOK   0  f    I'lSI  T  «  Y 


1 


m 


Monongnheln,  wlicn  n  dcmll y  flro  was  opoiicd  on  Iiis  ranks  l)y  a  fdron 
of  two  luuuhfd  French  and  nix  luindrod  India n,  lurking  in  tho 
covert  of  a  wood.  1Mic  main  body  hivstencd  up,  with  tho  artillorv 
and  lUudilock  usrd  rvory  exertion  to  inspirit  his  men.  Five  horses 
were  shot  nnder  him,  and  he  soon  fell,  with  u  mortal  wound.  Sixty 
of  his  ofTiccrH  were  kiUed  or  disabled;  and  his  troops,  falling  on  all 
sides  from  tho  fire  of  their  invisible  opponents,  were  thrown  into 
hctpeless  panic  and  confusion.  Tho  provincials,  under  Colonel 
"W'jujhiiigton,  a  young  olTicer  who  luid  aceompanied  Braddock  as  aid 
alone  made  efTeetual  resistance,  and  covered  the  retreat  of  the  dis- 
eomfitod  regulars.  On  this  terrible  occasion,  the  loss  of  the  Eni.di.sli 
in  killed  and  wounded  waa  seven  hundred  men,  while  that  of  the  en- 
emy was  only  about  sixty.     The  expedition  was  entirely  abandoned. 

In  the  same  year  an  army  of  six  thousand  men,  \inder  General 
Johnson,  w jus  dispatched  again.st  the  FreiK  h  fortress  of  Cro\/n  Point, 
on  Lake  Champlain.  To  oppose  this  force,  Baron  Dieskan,  with 
two  thousand  men,  was  sent  from  Montreal,  and  after  passing  to  the 
upper  extremity  of  Lake  Champlain,  landed  his  troops,  and  marelied 
toward  the  camp  of  the  enemy.  In  a  narrow  defile  he  defeate(l  a 
large  foree  of  Kngli.sh  and  Mohawk  Indians,  sent  in  advance  to  inter- 
cept him,  and  then  proceeded  to  assault  the  English  camp.  It  was, 
however,  protected  by  a  breastwork  of  fallen  trees,  and  by  an  almost 
impenetrable  swamp.  The  assailants  were  repulsed,  with  tho  loss 
of  a  thousand  men,  and  the  survivors  retreated  to  Crown  Poijit. 
Dicskau,  mortally  wounded,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  English. 
Nevertheless,  the  succcssfid  general  did  not  proceed  against  Crown 
Point;  and  even  suffered  the  French  to  fortify  themselves  at 
Ticondcroga. 

In  the  two  succeeding  years  (1756,  1757)  the  gallant  Marquis  dc 
Montcalm,  placed  at  the  licad  of  military  affairs  in  Canada,  gained 
a  scries  of  brilliant  successes,  ending  with  the  reduction  of  Forts 
Oswego  and  William  Henry.  The  garrison  of  the  latter,  two  thou- 
sand in  number,  after  the  surrender,  were  attacked  by  tho  Indians 
of  Montcalm's  army,  arid  a  number  were  killed;  but  the  reports  of 
the  massacre  appear  to  have  been  extraordinarily  exaggerated.  Most 
of  the  command  found  protection  in  the  French  camp,  and  the 
greater  part  of  the  remainder,  who  fled  into  the  woods,  reached  Fort 
Fi<lward  in  safety.  At  the  close  of  this  period,  in  spite  of  the  exer- 
tions of  the  English,  the  French  still  held  pos-session  of  nearly  all 
the  di.sputod  territory,  except  Acadia;  and  a  long  chain  of  military 


i 


:ms 


;:'^M'/-''',,/i£Sl^usi'l!ES''f!'f'i^^'-*'»'" ' ' 


^Cr 


■M-K'^  ' 


n 

?H 

j^ji 

ft'*  f.K#s 

;         -f^    Ii  ,   i:    ft!.'.      ■ 

IS 

i.o 

^' 


THE  FBENCH  IN  AMEBICA. 


418 


posts,  extending  from  the  moutli  of  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  head- 
waters of  the  Ohio,  still  remained  in  their  hands,  and  protected  theijf 
acquisitions.  They  had  driven  the  English  from  Lake  George,  and 
compelled  the  Iroquois  to  observe  neutrality.  A  terrible  Indian  war 
was  also  devastating  the  north-western  frontier  of  the  British  colonies. 

Under  the  vigorous  administration  of  Pitt,  however,  the  war  was 
prosecuted  with  energy ;  and  the  British- American  colonies,  stimu- 
lated by  his  promises  and  requisitions,  made  extraordinary  prepara- 
tions for  the  conquest  of  the  French  provinces.  Including  a  large 
force  of  regulars  which  had  been  shipped  from  England,  the  entire 
levies  available  for  this  object  amounted  to  fifty  thousand  troops; 
whereas  the  whole  population  of  Canada,  capable  of  bearing  arms, 
did  not  exceed  twenty  thousand.  The  first  operation  of  this  over- 
whelming force  was  the  capture  of  the  strong  fortress  and  town  of 
Louisburg  (see  Cape  Breton,  Acadia,  •Sec),  and  the  result  was  that 
the  entire  control  of  the  Gulf  of  St.  I^iwrence  and  the  adjacent 
islands,  passed  finally  into  the  hands  of  the  English.        '    ' 

Meanwhile,  General  Abercrombie,  with  sixteen  thousand  men, 
passing  down  Lake  George,  made  a  fierce  a^jsault  on  Ticonderoga, 
garrisoned  by  some  two  thousand  French  soldiers.  But  the  defences 
proved  much  stronger  than  had  been  supposed ;  and  after  a  desperate 
struggle,  lasting  for  four  hours,  and  the  loss  of  two  thousand  men, 
in  killed  and  wounded,  the  British  commander  drew  off  his  forces 
and  retreated,  with  disorder  and  precipitation,  to  Fort  William 
lleury.  Fort  Frontenac,  feebly  garrisoned,  was  not  long  after  taken 
by  a  force  of  English  provincials,  who,  however,  lost  five  hundred 
of  their  number  from  sickness.  Another  force  dispatched  against 
Fort  Du  Quesne,  afler  meeting  with  some  reverses,  succeeded  in 
compelling  the  French  to  evacuate  that  important  post 


\  ■  •■ 


'*ffp  -n 


414         THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HI8T0BT, 


Lll«n>JLi.JuiU     xA« 


PRBPARATIONS  FOR  THE  CONQUEST  OF  CANADA. — ARMAMENT 
UNDER   WOLFE   DISPATCHED  TO  QUEBEC.  —  DEFEAT   OF  THE 
FRENCH     ON    THE    HEIGHTS    OF    ABRAHAM.  —  DEATH    Qp 
WOLFE   AND   MONTCALM. — SURRENDER  OF  QUEBEC:   BE- 
SIEGED    BY     DE     LEVI. — CONCENTRATION     OF    THE 
ENGLISH     FORCES. — FALL     OF     MONTREAL    AND 
OF     CANADA:     CESSION     TO     ENGLAND. 


Encouraged  by  tbe  fall  of  Louisburg,  and  exasperated  by  defect 
and  loss  in  other  quarters,  the  English  now  made  extraordinary  ex- 
ertions for  the  final  conquest  of  Canada.  General  Amherst,  with 
twelve  thousand  troops,  advanced  by  way  of  Lake  Champlain,  aud 
the  important  stations  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point  were  aban- 
doned by  the  French,  obliged  to  concentrate  their  comparatively 
feeble  forces  for  the  protection  of  Quebec.  To  attack  this  ancient 
capital  and  stronghold  of  the  Canadian  French,  General  Wolfe,  a 
young  officer,  who  had  di.stinguished  him.sclf  at  the  siege  of  Louis- 
burg, was  entrusted  with  the  command  of  eight  thousand  men,  aided 
by  a  powerful  fleet,  with  which,  in  June,  1759,  he  mady  his  appear- 
ance in  the  St.  Lawrence. 

TIic  brave  Montcalm  had  made  every  exertion  for  the  defence  of 
the  city,  and  had  concentrated  there  an  army  nearly  as  large  as  th.it 
of  the  enemy,  but  composed  mainly  of  Canadians  and  Iiuliaii.>j.  The 
supply  of  })rovisions  was  also  very  limited.  Wolfe  landed  on  the 
isle  of  Orleans,  and  first  attempted  the  Frencli  camp  at  Montmorency, 
near  the  cit}',  the  fire  of  the  ships-of-war  covering  hi.s  disembarka- 
tion. (July  Slst.)  But  the  French,  strongly  posted,  aud  fightin"' 
gallantly,  repulsed  tbe  as.sailar,t.s,  who  were  compelled  to  retire  with 
the  loss  of  an  hundred  and  eighty-two  killed,  and  more  than  six 
hundred  wounded. 

At  a  council  of  the  officers  of  the  invading  army,  it  was  now 
resolved  to  make  an  attemj/t  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  city,  where 
the  lofty  heights  of  Abraham  present  their  almost  inaccessible  front 
upon  tlie  river.  To  mislead  the  enemy,  tbe  sbijw  moved  a  numbt-r 
of  miles  above  Quelwc,  and  Dc  Bougainville,  who,  with  a  force  of  fif 


THE  FRENCH  IN  AMERICA. 


415 


teen  hundied  men,  had  been  dispatched  by  Montcalm  to  oppose  them, 
deceived  by  this  manoeuvre,  also  moved  up  the  river.  On  the  niglj^t 
of  the  12th  of  September,  the  vessels,  dropping  silently  down  the 
stream,  disembarked  the  whole .  force  of  British  troops  at  Wolfe's 
Cove,  just  below  the  face  of  the  precipitous  bluff.  Grasping  the 
bushes  to  aid  their  perilous  ascent,  the  soldiers  succeeded  in  climbing 
to  the  summit,  and  on  the  plains  above  were  soon  arrayed  in  order 
of  battle.  Montcalm,  on  learning  the  dits'^trous  intelligence,  at  once 
perceived  that  nothing  but  an  immediate  victory  could  save  the  city, 
and  marched  with  all  speed  to  llie  scene  of  action. 

Some  fifteen  hundred  skirmishers  and  Indians,  who  arrived  first, 
kept  up  a  desultory  discharge  of  musketry  from  the  bushes;  but  the 
British  army  mostly  reserved  its  fire  until  the  main  body  of  the 
enemy,  advancing  briskly,  had  approached  within  forty  yards  of 
their  lines.  Almost  at  the  first  volley,  both  generals  fell,  mortally 
wounded,  and  the  French  were  immediately  thrown  into  confusion. 
Their  defeat  wrs  completed  by  frequent  charges  of  the  bayonet, 
aided  by  the  Highland  brc  id.vword.  Wolfe,  carried  to  the  rear,  and 
bearing  the  cry,  "they  run,"  inquired  "who  run?"  and  being  told 
that  it  was  the  enemy,  gave  directions  for  ensuring  the  victory,  and 
exclaimed,  "Now,  God  be  praised!  I  die  happy."  Hardly  was  the 
battle  over,  when  "Oxj  Bougainville,  who  hurried  to  the  scene  of  ac- 
tion, and  whose  presence,  a  little  earlier,  might  have  changed  the 
fate  of  the  day,  appeared ;  but  seeing  the  defeat  of  his  commander, 
at  once  retreated.  On  the  18th,  the  city  capitulated  on  honourable 
terms,  the  French  troops  not  being  made  prisoners  of  war,  but  con- 
veyed to  their  own  country. 

Amherst,  who  had  taken  Crown  Point  and  Ticonderoga,  and 
Jolaison,  who  had  taken  F."jrt  Niagara,  were  unable,  from  the  late- 
ness of  tlie  season,  to  join,  according  to  the  pluu  of  the  campaign, 
tlie  victorious  forces  of  Quebec.  General  De  Levi,  now  the  chief 
i'.'ench  commander,  had,  lacantime,  assembled  ten  thousand  troops 
at  >i'nitreal,  and  in  the  following  spring  (April  27th,  1760)  landing 
bis  for»."s,  took  up  a  position  on  the  heights  of  Abraham,  and  laid 
siege  to  i!>e  city.  The  garrison,  under  General  Murray,  consisted 
of  six  thousand  men;  but  in  consequence  of  the  ravages  of  scurv}, 
only  half  of  thorn  were  fit  for  duly.  The  general,  considering  the 
event  of  the  siege  doubtful,  resolved  to  anticipate  matters,  and, 
accordingly,  with  all  his  available  force,  on  the  27tli,  attacked  the 
enemy  at  Sillcry.      Overwhelmed   by  suj)erior  numbers,   he   wi.s 


^l:fc: 


^^:t 


416 


TUE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF   HI8T0EY, 


repulsed  with  great  loss,  and,  retreating  to  Quebec,  directed  all  his 
energies  toward  putting  that  stronghold  in  a  state  of  defence.    The 
arrival  of  a  fleet,  under  Admiral  Scranton,  in  the  middle  of  May 
compelled  the  French  to  raise  the  siege. 

They  retreated  to  Montreal,  where  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil 
having  concentrated  his  troops,  made  an  effort  to  hold  out  against 
the  combined  forces  of  General  Amherst  and  those  of  Quebec  and 
Niagara,  which  had  now  united  in  offensive  operations.  He  was 
compelled,  however,  on  the  8th  of  September,  of  the  same  year  to 
sign  a  capitulation,  surrendering  the  city  and  the  whole  of  Canada 
to  the  British.  Very  liberal  terms  were  accorded  by  the  victors,  the 
free  exercise  of  the  Catholic  faith  being  guaranteed  to  the  inhabitants 
and  the  property  of  the  religious  communities  preserved  inviolate 
By  the  treaty  of  Paris,  concluded  in  1763,  the  possession  of  Canada, 
as  well  as  of  the  other  conquered  provinces,  was  formally  ceded  by 
the  French  court.to  the  British  government 


ACADIA,    ETC. 


KXPEDITION  OP  DE  M0NT8  AND  CHAMPLAIN  — PIRST  82TIT,K- 
MKNT  OP  ACADIA. — PORT  ROYAL. — MORTALITY  AMONG  THE 
COLONISTS, — LE8CARBAT.  —  THE  JESUITS. — SETTLEMENT 
AT  MOFNT   DESERT:   BROKEN   UP  BY    THE    ENGLISH  — 
DESTRUCTION  OP  PORT  ROYAL.  —  ALEXANDER. — LA 
TOUR.  —  CESSIONS  AND  RECESSIONS  OP  ACADIA. — 
HOSTILITIES    OP    THE    ENC^LISH    COLONIES. — 
PIRATICAL  EXPEDITIONS.  —  PINAL  SUBJEC- 
TION OP  ACADIA  TO  THE  ENGLISH. 

Nova  Scotia  (at  that  time  called  Acadia)  was  included  in  the 
extensive  province  of  New  France,  over  which,  in  1603,  De  Monts 
was  appointed  governor.  In  March,  1604,  accompanied  by  Cham- 
pl.iin,  the  famous  founder  of  tic  Canadian  colony,  and  other  adven- 
turers, he  sailed  with  four  ships  from  Havre,  and  on  the  15th  of 
May  arrived  at  a  harbour  of  Acadia,  which  he  called  Port  Rossignal. 
At  Port  Mouton,  he  landed  and  made  an  encampment,  and  afterwards 
(•raising  along  the  shore,  passed  by  the  Bay  of  Fundy  into  a  lie.iiitiful 
and  extensive  basin,  now  known  as  the  harbour  of  Annapolis.  With 
ilio  beauty  and  convenience  of  this  location,  Potrincourt,  one  of  his 
companions,  was  so  charmed,  that  he  resolved  on  making  a  settlement 
there,  naming  it  Port  Royal. 

De  Monts  next  discovered  the  river  of  St.  John,  on  the  west  side 
of  the  bay,  and  immediately  afterwards  the  St.  Croix,  on  a  small 
i.sland  at  the  mouth  of  which  he  resolved  to  winter.  The  situation 
proved  unfavourable,  and  out  of  seventy-six  colonists,  who  had 
remained  with  him,  thirty-seven  perished  of  Uie  scurvy.  Pontgrav^ 
tlic  associate  of  Champlairi,  arriving  from  Europe,  joined  the  sur. 
vivors;  St.  Croix  was  abandoi.ed,  and  all  betook  themselves  to  Part 
]!oval.  During  thr  next  winter,  De  Monta  was  absent  in  France, 
Vol.  III.-  '->7 


m 


•■V»-   I    1..    •  ■      "■    : 


W':^A'' 


THE  PEOl'LE'S   BOOK   OF   HISTORY. 


leaving  Champlaiti,  Pontgrav<!',  and  Campdore  in  command  of  the 
colony,  and  did  not  return  until  the  summer  of  1606.  In  August 
of  that  year  ho  again  .sailed  homeward.  The  settlement  owed  its 
existence,  in  these  early  days,  almost  entirely  to  the  perseverance 
and  .sagacity  of  Lescarbot,  a  lawyer,  who  had  accompanied  Potrin- 
coi'rt,  and  vho  in.si.sted  on  the  necessity  of  depending  on  the  culti- 
vation of  the  ^oil  for  subsistence,  and  not  on  supplies  from  Europe 
or  a  precarious  traffic  with  the  Indians.  The  succeeding  winter 
proved  mild,  and  the  colonists  employed  themselves  in  huntinfr  and 
in  building;  but,  with  the  spring,  arrived  the  disagreeable  news  that 
the  charter  given  to  De  Monts  had  been  revoked,  and  that  the  colony 
could  no  longer  depend  on  his  a.ssistance. 

I'otrincourt  now  sailed  for  France,  where  he  obtained  from  the 
king  a  grant  of  Fort  Royal,  on  o-ndition  of  taking  out  two  Jesuits 
to  convert  the  savages.  These  gentlemen  he  strictly  excluded  from 
any  share  in  the  management  of  the  cclony,  informing  them  "that 
their  duty  was  limited  to  teaching  men  the  way  to  heaven,  and  that 
it  remained  for  him  to  govern  and  direct  those  under  him  on  oartli." 
In  consequence  of  this  treatm dt,  they  dispatched  an  ill  account  of 
him  to  France;  and  in  1613  a  ves.sel  .sent  from  that  country,  with 
two  more  priests  and  some  emigrants,  carried  away  the  Jesuits  from 
Port  Royal,  and  .sailed  to  the  island  of  Mount  Desert,  not  far  from 
Penobscot  liny.  Here  a  .settlement,  named  St.  Saviour'.s,  w.is  foumlod 
and  the  erection  of  buildings  was  conmienced;  but  while  thus  en- 
gaged, the  j)eaceful  coloni.sts  were  surprised  by  an  P^nglish  shin-of- 
war,  under  Captain  Argall,  of  Virgini.a,  who  seized  all  their  jiroportv 
and  made  them  prisoners.  One  of  the  Jesuits,  while  urgintr  his  peo- 
ple to  defend  themselves,  wiv  .shot  tlirough  the  head;  aiid  two  ves- 
sels, at  anchor  off  the  port,  were  seized,  in  one  of  which  a  part  of 
the  colonists  were  sent  to  France,  and  the  rest  in  the  other  to  Virginia. 

Despite  the  peace  existing  between  the  two  nation.s,  the  same 
piratical  commander,  in  1615,  ngain  set  forth  from  Virginia  to  com- 
plete the  destruction  of  the  feeble  colonies  of  the  French.  Piloted 
by  one  of  the  Jesuit*,  he  proceeded  to  Port  Royal,  then  conmiaiided 
by  Biencourt,  the^ifion  of  Potrincourt,  and  levelled  the  fort,  the  pov- 
ernor  vainly  attempting  to  propitiate  him  by  negotiation  and  fair 
offers!.  :^)me  of  the  French  fled  to  Canada,  some  joined  the  native 
tribes,  and  the  rest  were  sent  prisoners  to  England.  "This  outrage- 
ous destruction  of  I'ort  Royal,"  says  an  Eiiglisli  author,  "durinr  a 
time  of  profound  peace  between  England  and  France,  could  never 


if 


inA  rKi!.^CH  IN   AMERICA. 


419 


be  defended  on  the  slightest  ground  of  justice  or  provocation;  and 
must  be  attributed  principally  to  the  thirst  for  plunder,  and  to  reli- 
gions bigotry.  By  this  atrocious  violation  of  private  property,  the 
first  settlement  made  in  North  America  was  destroyed  in  1615,  after 
prospering  for  ten  years,  and  without  experiencing  a  share  of  that 
ferocious  opjiosition,  from  the  natives,  which  proved  so  fatal  to  the 
early  attempts  of  England  at  colonization." 

Though  the  settlement  was  thus  broken  up,  numbers  of  French 
and  Dutch  continued  to  resort  to  the  shores  of  Acadia,  for  fishing 
and  trading  with  the  natives,  and  Sir  William  Alexander,  to  whom 
James  I.  had  given  a  patent  of  the  country,  under  the  title  of  Nova 
Scotia,  made  an  ineffectual  attempt  to  found  a  colony  there.  In  1627, 
with  a  French  Calvinist,  named  Kircht  (Kirk),  he  sailed  for  the 
province,  (where  Port  Royal  had  commenced  a  second  feeble  growth) 
and,  after  capturing  a  fleet  of  French  transports,  destined  for  that 
settlement  and  for  Quebec,  again  reduced  the  place.  He  made  no 
settlements,  however,  to  replace  those  which  he  had  destroyed;  and 
two  veara  afterwards,  transferred  the  province  to  La  Tour,  a  French 
Protestant,  who  had  formed  English  connections'.  This  gentleman 
proceeded  to  Nova  Scotia,  where  his  son  Etienne  held  a  fortress  for 
tlie  French  at  Cape  Sable,  but  was  unable  to  enforce  his  submission 
to  the  English  patent,  and  returned  without  effecting  a  settlement. 

In  1632,  by  the  treaty  of  St.  Gertnains,  Canada,  Acadia,  and  Cape 
Breton  were  receded  to  France,  and  were  placed  under  the  control 
ofthe  "Company  of  New  France."  (See  Canada.)  Etienne  La  Tour, 
whoso  chief  establishment  was  on  the  River  St.  John,  by  his  rivalry 
ii.  the  fur-trade,  gave  great  annoyance  to  the  governors  appointed  by 
the  company;  and  M.  Deny.«<,  the  third  of  them,  was  completely 
ruined,  and  compelled  to  leave  the  colony.  When,  in  1654,  the 
province  was  reduced  by  a  force  dispatched  by  Cromwell,  the  suc- 
cessful intriguer  transferred  his  allegiance  to  England,  and  received 
a  jrrant  of  his  lands,  &c.,  from  the  hands  of  that  sovereign.  The 
whole,  however,  by  the  treaty  of  Breda,  was  again  receded  to  PVance, 
and  again  became  repeatedly  the  subject  of  aggression  and  violence 
from  the  neighbouring  English  colonies. 

Sir  William  Phipps,  in  1690,  took  Port  Royal,  again  destroyed 
the  fort,  and  burned  the  French  establishments  at  Chedebucto.  The 
French,  in  retaliutiun,  demolished  the  English  fort  at  Pemaquid,  and 
(\)lonel  Church,  in  turn,  sailed  up  the  Bay  of  Fundy  (1696),  burned 
their  houses,  killed  their  cattle,  and  destroyed  the  dikes  which  tliev 


I  ill 


420 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF   UISTOKt 


P 


hnd  built  to  protect  their  nieadowa  from  the  sea.  Id  1704,  that  oner, 
gelic,  but  cruel  and  unscrupulous  commander,  with  six  hundred 
troops,  made  a  second  pii  .itical  excursion  from  New  England  to  the 
devoted  colony.  lie  seized  all  the  property  and  burned  all  the 
houses  at  Ptissamaquoddy,  and  sent  an  expedition  in  boats,  which 
plundered  and  destroyed  three  thriving  villages  at  Minas.  The  fort- 
ress at  Port  Royal,  which  had  been  rebuilt,  proved  too  strong  for 
him,  and  after  sailing  up  the  Ba.sin  of  Minas,  and  laying  waste  all 
the  settlements  there,  he  returned  with  his  plunder  to  Massachusetts. 
In  1 707,  a  thousand  troops,  with  two  ahips  of  war,  were  again  dis 
pat<;hed  from  New  England  against  Port  Royal,  but  were  repulsed 
with  spirit  by  the  governor,  M.  Subercase;  and  a  second  attempt 
afterwards  made  by  the  same  force,  proved  equally  futile. 

The  English,  their  pride  piqued  by  these  successive  failures,  row 
made  preparations  on  a  scale  which  should  ensure  success;  and  in 
1710  an  armament  consisting  of  nineteen  vessels,  bearing  five  ro"!- 
menUs,  under  command  of  General  Nicholson,  arrived  at  Port  Royal. 

The  troops  wore  landed  and  batteries  were  erected;  and  after  a 
heavy  cannonade  on  both  sides,  tlie  brave  governor,  compelled  by 
superior  force,  capitulated  on  honourable  terms.  Acadia  thus  again 
came  finally  into  pos.sc8.sion  of  the  English.  The  cruel  treatment  of 
the  inhabitants  and  their  lamentable  expulsion  from  their  homes  will 
be  briefly  described  in  the  succeeding  chapter. 


Vj      XJu      ilit      X         X       uLi      Xt  X      X  < 


ACCOUNT  OP  THR  ACADIANS. THEIR  INNOCBNCB,  8IUPLICIT1, 

AND  HAPPINBSS.  —  DESCIlIPTIf^S  BY  JIATNAL.  —  ENMITY  OP 
THK    KN0LI8H.  —  MASJJACRB     AT    KENNEBEC:     REVENGED 
BY     TH;<    INDIANS.  —  FURTHER    H  0  .ST  1 1,  IT!  E& — CRUEL 
BXP'/LSION     OF     THB     ACADIANS. THBIl     TRANS- 
FORMATION    AND    6DPPERIN08. — APF8CTIN0 
MBMUaiAL.  —  TUBIB  PATE. 


AOCORDINO  to  the  accounts  of  conteraporary  writers,  there  has 
seldom  been  a  community  bo  pros})erous  in  its  simplicity  or  so  happv 
io  ita  isolation  aud  obscurity  a^  the  little  colonj  of  Acadia    The 


THE  FRJ;NCH  in  AMERICA. 


421 


rich  lands  of  that  province,  protected  from  the  sea  by  well-constnucted 
dikes,  and  innproved  by  intelligent  husbandry,  afforded  an  ample 
Bubsistence  to  all  th'  inhabitants;  and  the  rarity  of  foreign  inter- 
course left  their  affections  and  manners  in  a  state  of  primitive 
ingenue  :  .:  >ss.  Though  far  from  warlike  in  their  habits,  a  spirit  of 
patriotism  and  attachment  to  the  mother-country  was  strongly  im- 
planted in  their  minds.  In  the  words  of  the  Abb6  Raynal,  "such 
was  the  attachment  which  the  French  then  had  for  the  honour  of 
their  country,  that  the  Acadiana,  who,  in  submitting  to  a  new  3'^oke, 
had  sworn  never  to  bear  arms  against  their  former  standards,  v/ere 
called  French  neutrals. 

"No  magistrate  was  ever  appointed  to  rule  over  them,  and  they 
were  never  acquainted  with  the  laws  of  England.  No  rerits,  or 
taxes  of  any  kind  were  ever  exacted  from  them.  Their  new  sover- 
eign seemed  to  have  forgotten  them,  and  they  were  equally  strangers 
to  him.         **»»*»»**# 

"Their  manners  were,  of  course,  extremely  simple.  There  was 
never  a  cause,  either  civil  or  criminal,  of  impoitance  enough  to  be 
carried  before  the  Court  of  Judicature  established  at  AnnapoliH. 
Whatever  little  differences,  from  time  to  time,  arose  among  them, 
were  amicably  adjusted  by  their  elders.  AW  their  public  acts  were 
drawn  by  their  pastors,  who  had  likew'se  the  keeping  of  their  wills, 
for  which,  and  for  their  religious  services,  the  inhalnlants  vojuntarily 
gave  them  a  twenty-seventh  part  of  their  hfirvosts, 

"These  were  plentiful  enough  to  su{)ply  mow,  than  a  sufliciency 
for  every  act  of  liberality.  Real  misery  was  entirely  unknown,  and 
benevolence  prevented  the  d^'i  mds  of  poverty.  Every  misfortune 
was  relieved  before  it  v/as  felt,  nd  good  was  universally  dispensed 
without  ostentation  on  the  pn-t  of  the  giver,  and  without  humiliating 
the  person  who  received.  These  people  were,  in  a  word,  a  society 
of  brethren,  every  individual  of  whom  was  e(i[ually  ready  to  give, 
and  to  receive,  what  he  thought  the  common  right  of  mankind. 

"So  perfect  a  harmony  naturally  prevented  all  those  connections 
of  gallantry  which  are  so  often  fatal  to  the  peace  of  families.  There 
never  was  an  instance  in  this  society  of  an  unlawful  commerce  be- 
tween the  two  sexes.  (!)  This  evil  was  prevented  by  early  marriages; 
for  no  one  passed  his  youth  in  a  state  of  celibacy.  As  soon  as  a 
young  man  came  to  the  proper  .  :<>,  the  community  built  him  a  house, 
ploughed  the  lands  about  it,  sowed  them,  and  supplied  him  with  all 
the  necessaries  of  life  for  a  twelvemonth.     Ilerc  he  received  the 


f4 


"If 


m 


\Mi 


I 


^1 


i'i    >! 


422 


THE   PEOl'LE'8   BOOK   OF    lUSToKY. 


jtnrtner  whom  bo  had  chosen,  ami  who  brought  liitn  her  portion  of 
Y  ^^  Lilicr's  floths.  This  family  grew  up,  and  prospered  like  tho 
oiiicrs.     They  altogether  amounted  to  i^out  eighteen  thouannd  aonls. 

"Who  will  not  be  affected,"  he  lo.),'.:  lues,  "with  the  innocent 
manners  and  the  tranquillity  of  this  fortunate  colony?  Who  will 
not  wish  for  the  duration  of  its  happiness?  Who  will  not  construct 
in  imagination,  an  impenetrable  wall,  that  may  separate  these  colo- 
nies from  their  unjust  and  turbulent  neighbours?  The  calamities  of 
the  people  have  no  i)eriod;  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  end  of  their 
felicity  is  always  at  hand." 

This  peaceful  and  hapj)y  association,  so  eloquently  described,  was 
destined  to  a  brief  tenure  of  its  innocent  prosperity.  The  neighbour- 
ing British  settlers,  harassed  by  Indian  hostilities,  and  ascribing  them 
to  the  influence  of  the  French,  were  not  long  in  taking  a  sharp  and 
cruel  revenge.  A  force  sent  from  Massachusetts  surprised  the  French 
and  Indian  establishment  at  Kennebec,  and  slaughtered  most  of  the 
inhabitants.  Among  them  was  the  venerable  Father  Ralk-,  wlio 
had  lived  for  forty  years  as  a  missionary  among  the  Indians,  and 
who  was  murdered  at  the  foot  of  a  cross  erected  in  tho  centre  of  tlie 
village.  In  revenge  for  this  deed,  an  Indian  force  committed  equal 
cruelties  at  Canseau,  Dartmouth,  and  Halifax,  selling  their  prisoners 
to  the  PVench  at  Louisburg.  The  governor  of  that  town,  in  answer 
ro  the  remonstrances  of  the  English,  replied,  and  probably  with  truth 
'that  he  had  no  control  over  the  savages,  and  that  the  premiums 
given  for  p]nglish  prisoners  were  paid  from  feelings  of  humanity,  to 
prevent  the  horrible  tortures  and  death  which  the  savages  would 
inflict."  The  latter  still  continued  hostilities,  "incessantly  commit- 
ting murders  along  the  coast;  and  it  was  impossible  to  guard  tho 
colonists  effectually  against  enemies,  who  sprung  with  the  agility 
and  fury  of  tigers  from  the  thicket.s,  or  who  came  along  silently  in 
their  birch  canoes  during  night." 

An  Engli.sh  expedition  being  dispatched  to  Chignecto,  the  inhab- 
itants, dreadip'^  the  fate  of  Kennebec,  burned  their  hou.ses  and  joined 
Ija  Corne,  the  commander  of  a  Canadian  force,  who  had  come  down 
to  Acadia,  and  had  erected  several  forts  there.  In  1754  an  Enfliiih 
force  reduced  several  of  these  hostile  stations,  and  Major  Lawrence, 
the  Englisli  governor  of  Nova  Scotia,  resolved,  unlcs  the  Acadians 
would  take  the  oatli  of  allegiance  to  the  English  crown  in  tlie  fullest 
ti'rrn.i,  they  should  be  transported  from  the  country.  The  mifor- 
tunate  inhabitants,  most  of  whom  had  peaceably  subm^ted  to  the 


THE   FBENCM    IN    ..MEKICA. 


421! 


In 


informed  that  all  tht- 
they  and  their  familii  < 

At  this  time,  the  bUuc 
about  twenty  thousand,  w 


new  rule,  entreatfl  that  they  might  be  alluwed  to  remove  into  Can- 
ada or  Cape  Breiuu;  and  ofTtrcd  to  swear  full  allegiance  to  the 
British  sovereign,  if  permitted  to  remain,  only  excepting  bearing 
arms  against  their  countryuK'n  and  the  Indians.  ,.,., 

But  ft  cruel  policy,  fearing  t  tro  irthen  the  other  French  colonies, 
prevented  the  authorities  fr-  ui  acL  ang  to  either  of  these  requests, 
and  Colonel  Winslow,  witho.  t  ;iiiy  intimation  of  his  purjiuse,  sum- 
moned the  Acad  ns  to  ;tppeur  before  him  j\  Grand  Pre,  About 
four  hundred  men,  uo  Mlied  v  'h  this  requisition,  were  impris- 
oned in  the  chur-  h    it  tb;  ,  and,  to  their  consternation,  were 

_  fl  i.ks  were  confiscated,  and  that 
^  I  Misported  to  the  British  colonies, 
opulation  of  Acadia  amounted  to 
re  living  in  ease  and  prosperity  on 
their  farms,  when  thus  ruthlessl}-  summoned  to  exile  and  separation. 
On  learning  the  terrible  decree,  "many  of  them,"  says  Mr.  McGregor, 
"fled  to  the  woods,  and  joined  the  Indians;  others  found  tlieir  way 
to  Canada,  and  to  the  island  of  St.  John's,  near  Priuco  Edward's. 
The  settlements  at  Chignecto  and  Miuas  were  subjected  to  conflagra- 
tion ;  and  all  their  villages  and  farms  laid  waste,  and  their  houses 
and  churches  reduced  to  ashes.  The  wretched  inhabitants,  deprived 
of  food  or  shelter,  were  obliged  to  surrender,  or  fly  to  the  woods,  in 
order  to  escape  finally  to  Canada,  the  island  of  St.  John's  or  Cape 
Breton.  Some  found  their  way  to,  and  established  themselves  in 
Ilayti  and  Louisiana.  From  seven  to  eight  thousand  surrendered 
at  discietion ;  and  Colonel  Winslow,  in  sending  them  away  from  a 
country  to  which  they  were  so  much  attached,  acted  with  far  more 
kindness  and  delicacy  than  his  orders  strictly  allowed.  Their  treat- 
ment in  the  southern  colonies,  to  which  they  were  transported,  was 
cruel  and  undeserved;  they  experienced  the  treatment,  not  of 
})risoncrs  of  war,  but  of  condemned  convicts.  Several  families  found 
their  way  to  France,  where  they  arrived  utterly  destitute." 

In  an  aifeuting,  but,  it  is  almost  needless  to  say  futile,  memorial  to 
the  British  sovereign,  (George  III.,)  the  exiled  Acadians,  from  their 
places  of  banishment,  stated  the  inhumanity  of  their  treatment,  their 
conscientious  scruples  as  to  the  required  oath,  and  besought  redress. 
"Thus,"  they  conclude,  "we,  our  ancient  parents  and  grand-parents, 
(men  of  great  integrity,  and  approved  fidelity  to  your  majesty,)  and 
our  innocent  wives  and  children,  became  the  unhappy  victims  of 
those  gro^jndless  fears;  we  were  transported  into  the  English  colonies, 


\n 


^Jili^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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I.I 


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Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


23  WfST  MAIN  STRIET 

WEBSTiR.N.Y    MS  SO 

(716)  •73-4iC3 


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i/.A 


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I 


^2* 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  IlISTOllY. 


and  this  was  done  with  so  much  haste,  and  so  little  regard  to  our 
necessities  and  the  tenderest  ties  of  nature,  that,  from  the  must 
social  enjoyments  and  affluent  circumstances,  many  found  themselves 
destitute  of  the  necessaries  of  life ;  parents  were  separated  from  cnil- 
dren,  and  husbands  from  wives,  some  of  whom  have  not,  to  this 
day,  met  again;  and  we  were  so  crowded  in  the  transport- vessels 
that  we  had  not  room  even  for  all  our  bodies  to  lie  down  at  once 
and  consequently  were  prevented  from  carrying  with  \is  proper 
necessaries,  especially  for  the  comfort  and  support  of  the  aged  and 
weak,  many  of  whom  quickly  ended  their  misery  with  their  lives : 
and  even  those  among  us  who  had  .suffered  most  deeply  from  your 
majesty's  enemies,  on  account  of  their  attachment  to  your  majesty's 
government,  were  equally  involved  in  the  common  calamity — of 
which  Rend  Leblanc,  the  notary  public,  before  mentioned,  is  a  re- 
markable instance:  he  was  seized,  confined,  and  brought  away  among 
the  rest  of  the  people,  and  his  family,  consisting  of  twenty  children 
and  about  an  hundred  and  fifty  grand-children,  were  scattered  in 
different  colonies; — so  that  he  was  put  ashore  at  New  York,  with 
only  his  wife  and  two  youngest  children,  in  an  infirm  state  of  health, 
from  whence  he  joined  three  more  of  his  children  at  Philadelphia, 
where  he  died,  without  any  more  notice  being  taken  of  him  than  of 
us,  notwithstanding  his  many  years'  labour  and  deep  sufferings  for 
your  majesty's  service. 

"The  miseries  we  have  since  endured  are  scarce  sufficiently  to  be 
expressed,  being  reduced,  for  a  livelihood,  to  toil  and  hard  labour  in 
u  southern  clime,  so  disagreeing  with  our  cuustitutions  that  most  of 
us  have  been  prevented  by  sickness  from  obtaining  the  necessary 
subsistence  for  our  families,  and  are  therefore  threatened  with  that 
which  we  esteem  the  greatest  aggravation  of  all  our  sufferings,  even 
of  having  our  cliiMren  forced  from  us,  and  bound  out  to  strangers,  and 
exposed  to  contagious  distempers,  unknown  in  our  native  country. 

"This,  compared  with  the  eiu«e  and  aflluence  we  enjoyed,  shows 
our  condition  to  be  extremely  wretched.  We  have  already  seen, 
in  this  province  of  Penn.sylvania,  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  our  peo- 
ple, which  is  more  than  half  the  number  that  wt»e  landed  here, 
perish  through  misery  and  various  diseases.  In  this  groat  distresfl 
and  mi.sery,  we  have,  under  God,  none  but  your  majesty  to  look  to, 
with  hopes  of  relief  and  redress.  We,  therefore,  hereby  implore 
your  gracious  protection,  and  request  you  may  be  plca-sed  to  let  the 
juiitioc  of  our  complaints  be  truly  and  impartially  inquire(4into,  and 


THE   FRENCH   IN   AMERICA. 


425 


that  your  majesty  would  please  to  grant  us  such  relief,  as  in  your 
justice  and  clemency  you  shall  think  our  case  requires,  and  we  shall 
hold  ourselves  bound  to  pray,"  &c. 

This  simple,  truthful,  and  touching  appeal,  with  others  of  the 
like  character,  availed  them  nothing  with  the  heartless  and  obstinate 
suvereign  to  whom  it  was  addressed.  Great  numbers  perished  in 
the  southern  colonies,  and  such  as  were  finally  suffered  to  return, 
found  their  ancient  homes  in  the  possession  of  the  invaders. 

Such  was  the  tragical  fate  of  a  community,  the  most  remarkable 
for  its  quiet  prosperity,  for  its  innocent  enjoyment,  and  for  its  patri- 
archal simplicity  of  manners,  perhaps  ever  known  in  history,  and 
almost  realizing  the  fabled  happiness  of  the  ancient  Arcadia  itself. 
If,  as  an  historical  event,  it^  importance  be  comparatively  small,  the 
interest  which  invests  all  unmerited  human  misfortunes  will  yet 
keep  the  mournful  facts  in  remembrance,  and  the  fate  of  Acadia, 
familiarized  and  eternized  by  the  genius  of  "Evangeline,"  will  ever 
remain  one  of  the  most  touching  and  memorable  episodes  in  Amer- 
ican annals. 


HlB«f  t3^ 


J^-1 


.11      .  ■. )    f. 


CAPE  BRETON,  ETC. 


Hi..  J 
■  I.U       .  V 


Sif!  ,?«i»* 


I  ■  ;/■ 


CE88I0N  OF  THE  PEENCH  PR0TINCB8  TO  BNQIAND. — lOUISBURG 

FOUNDED  ON  CAPE  BRETON:  ITS  IMPORTANCE. — EXPEDITION 

.    OF  PEPPERALl. — LODISBURO    TAXEN  BT  THE  ENGLISH: 

RiCEDED  TO  FRANCE. — EXPEDITION   OF   AHHBRST. — 

BRAYB  DEFENCE  OF  LOUISBURG:  ITS  SURRENDER  AND 

DESTRUCTION. — ST.  JOHN'S:    CAPTURED    BT    THE 

ENGLISH. — INDIAN  TROPHIES  DISCOVERED  THERE. 


■T   Ji:M.  .L 


,".  i!ri   iif  ,-.!■. ji   ii.f)'i-i\i  ii!i 


Cape 
oy  the 


The  early  resort  of  the  French  fishermen  to  the  bank  of  Now 
foundland  has  been  mentioned.  On  the  island  of  the  same  name, 
at  Placentia  Bay,  they  made  a  small  settlement,  and  were  in  the 
habit  of  frequenting  other  portions  of  the  coast;  but  the  whole,  by 
the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  was  ceded  to  Great  Britain.  The  island  of 
Cape  Breton,  (a  name  first  applied  by  the  early  French  voyagers  to 
its  eastern  point,  and  afterwards  extended  to  the  whole,)  was  first 
settled  in  the  year  1714,  by  some  colonists  from  Newfoundland  aud 
Acadia,  principally  for  convenience  of  fishing.  By  the  treaty  of 
Utrecht,  in  the  following  year,  Acadic,  Newfoundland,  and  other 
portions  of  "New  France,"  were  ceded  to  England;  but  Ca, 
Breton,  and  St.  John's  island  (Prince  Edward's)  were  retai. 
mother-country. 

These  diminished  possessions  now  assumed  fresh  importance  in 
the  eyes  of  the  French;  and  especially  with  a  view  to  coinmanding 
the  mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and  protecting  the  fisheries,  it  was 
determined  to  found  a  military  post  on  Cape  Breton.  Accordingly, 
in  the  year  1720,  the  town  and  harbour  of  Louisburg  were  furtiti  'J, 
and  were  eventually  made  one  of  the  most  important  strongholds  of 
the  French  in  all  America.  Its  value  to  that  people  was  great, 
especially  from  the  commanding  position  which  it  occupied  near  the 
fisheries — in  which,  at  some  times,  six  hundred  vessels  and  twenty- 
eight  thousand  seamen  were  constantly  employed.  No  i)aiiis  or 
outlay  wtus  spared  by  the  French  government  in  providi.ig  for  its 
strength  and  defence.     "  There  is  hardly  a  settlement,"  says  a  ;vritcr 


THE  FRENCH   IN    AMEKICA. 


of  the  day,  "  that  has  been  attended  with  more  expense  to  the  French 
nation  than  this  of  Louisburg.  It  is  certain  that  they  have  laid  out 
about  thirty  millions  of  livres ;  and  so  cogent  were  the  motives  which 
induced  them  to  put  this  scheme  into  execution,  that  the  preserva- 
tion of  Louisburg  will  always  be  considered  as  an  object  of  too  great 
importance  not  to  sacrifice  every  thing  to  it.  Cape  Breton  protects 
the  whole  French  trade  of  North  America,  and  is  of  equal  conse- 
quence in  regard  to  their  commerce  with  the  West  Indies.  If  they 
had  no  settlement  in  this  part  of  North  America,  their  vessels,  re- 
turning from  St.  Domingo  or  Martinique,  would  no  longer  be  safe 
on  the  Great  Bank  of  Newfoundland,  particularly  in  time  of  war; 
lastly,  as  it  is  situated  at  the  entrance  of  the  Oulf  of  St.  Lawrence, 
it  absolutely  commands  the  river  of  that  name." 

The  English,  continually  engaged  in  warfare  with  their  neigh- 
bours, were  not  long  in  making  demonstrations  against  a  place  of 
such  value  to  the  enemy,  and  so  easily  accessible  by  sea.  In  1745, 
a  force  of  four  thousand  men,  under  command  of  Colonel  "William 
I'epperall,  was  dispatched  against  Louisburg  from  New  England — a 
spirit  of  fanatical  enmity  to  the  French  and  to  Catholicism  being,  it 
is  said,  one  of  the  principal  exciting  causes.  Their  banner  bore  the 
legend,  "iVi7  desperandum^  Christo  duce,^^  supplied  by  the  famous 
Whitfield;  and  a  species  of  crusading  spirit  distinguished  the  expe- 
dition. This  force,  conveyed  to  the  scene  of  action  in  transports, 
was  joined  by  an  English  squadron,  under  Commodore  Warren, 
who  had  just  captured  a  French  seventy -four,  with  a  great  supply 
of  stores;  and  the  whole  armament,  both  naval  and  military,  laid 
siege  to  Louisburg.  On  the  18th  of  June,  after  a  brave  resistance 
of  forty-nine  days,  the  garrison  was  compelled  to  surrender,  and  the 
English  took  possession  of  the  town,  with  stores  and  merchandise 
of  immense  value.  Some  time  afterwards,  by  hoisting  the  French 
flag,  they  decoyed  into  the  harbour  and  captured  several  ships, 
richly  laden,  their  value  being  estimated  at  several  millidns  of 
dollars.  St.  John's  (Prince  Edward's)  also  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
English,  and  many  of  the  inhabitants  were  transported  to  France. 

By  the  treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle,  in  1748,  Cape  Breton,  in  ex- 
change for  Madras,  was  restored  to  France,  with  which  power  it 
remained  until  the  memorable  expedition  under  Boscawen  and 
Amherst,  with  Wolfe  and  Lawrence,  in  the  year  1758.  This  arma- 
iiiciit,  one  of  the  most  powerful  ever  dispatched  to  America,  con- 
sisted of  twenty-three  ships  of  the  line,  eighteen  frigates,  and  sloops- 


428 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


of-war  and  transports  amounting  to  an  hundred  and  fifty-seven 
ships,  and  of  sixteen  thousand  soldiers.  From  the  8th  to  the  26th 
of  July,  the  garrison,  under  their  governor,  M.  de  Drucourt,  defended 
the  place  with  extraordinary  bravery;  and  Madame  de  Drucourt, 
the  intrepid  wife  of  the  commander,  appeared  every  day  upon  the 
ramparts,  animating  the  soldiers  to  fresh  vigilance  and  exertion. 
Despite  these  heroic  efforts,  the  French,  overpowered  by  the  vastly 
superior  force  of  the  besiegers,  were  finally  compelled  to  surrender 
and  thus,  on  the  26th  of  July,  1758,  Cape  Breton  passed  finally  into 
the  hands  of  the  English. 

At  that  time,  the  population  of  Louisburg,  exclusive  of  the  troops 
was  about  five  thousand.  The  merchants  and  the  greater  part  of 
the  inhabitants  were  sent  to  France  in  English  vessels;  but  all  the 
officers  of  government,  both  civil  and  military,  and  all  the  troops 
numbering  nearly  six  thousand,  were  dispatched  to  England  as 
prisoners  of  war.  More  than  two  hundred  pieces  of  artillery,  be- 
sides stores  and  munitions  of  great  value,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
victors.  Fearing  lest  this  important  post  might  be  recovered  by  the 
French,  the  British  government  caused  the  town  and  the  massive 
fortifications  to  be  demolished,  and,  despite  the  natural  advantages 
of  the  place,  they  have  ever  since  remained  in  ruins. 

The  island  of  St.  John's,  or  Prince  Edward's,  discovered,  it  is  said 
by  Cabot,  and  afterwards  seen  by  Verrazano,  was  not  colonized  by 
the  French,  except  in  some  unimportant  fishing  stations,  until  after 
the  treaty  of  Utrecht.  Considerable  numbers  then  flocked  thither 
from  Acadia  and  Cape  Breton ;  and  the  colony  became  of  some  im- 
portance, both  for  its  fisheries  and  for  supplying  Louisburg  with 
provisions.  At  Port  La  Joye,  (now  Charlotte  Town,)  a  small  garri- 
son was  stationed.  At  the  lime  of  its  surrender  to  the  Englisli,  in 
1758,  the  population  was  about  six  thousand.  This  island  had  been 
for  many  years  the  resort  of  the  Mic-Mac  Indians,  noted  for  their 
murderous  and  continued  hostility  to  the  English.  The  latter 
averred  that  even  during  time  of  peace,  these  aggressions  and  ni.is- 
sucrcs  were  encouraged  by  the  French  of  St.  John's;  and  Colonel 
Kullo,  who,  after  after  the  surrender  of  Louisburg,  was  dispatched  by 
General  Amherst  to  take  possession  of  the  island,  asserted  that  on  its 
eai)ture,  a  vast  number  of  scalps,  the  trophies  of  Indian  cruelty, 
were  found  hung  up  in  the  house  of  the  French  governor.  On  the 
conclusion  of  peace  in  1763,  this  colony  and  that  of  Cape  Breton 
were  annexed  to  the  government  of  Nova  Scotia. 


LOUISIANA. 


LitliniJtrXiiiiii    I. 


THE    RIO   ORANDB. — THE    CANADIAN    FRENCH. — REPORTS  Of 
THE    INDIANS. — FATHER   MAROUETTB   AND   M.  JOLIBT:    THEIR 
EXPEDITION   IN  SEARCH    OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI:    VOTAOi: 
DOWN   ITS  STREAM  — PAINTED   MONSTERS.  —  THE   MIS- 
SOURI.— OHIO.  —  ARKANSAS. — RETURN    VOYAGE. 

DEATH    OF    FATHER    MARQUETTE.  —  ENTHUSIASM 
OF    THE    FRENCH     AT    HIS    DISCOVERT. 

In  the  account  of  Florida,  mention  has  been  made  of  a  majestic 
river,  discovered  by  the  famous  De  Soto,  in  1541,  and  described  as 
the  Rio  Grande.  The  disastrous  fate  of  the  expedition  wliich  he 
commanded,  seems  to  have  deterred  the  Spaniards  for'more  than  a 
century  from  making  any  further  attempt  in  the  same  direction.  For 
an  hundred  and  thirty  years  nothing  more  was  known  of  that  mighty 
stream,  the  effluence  of  a  continent,  and  now,  without  question,  the 
most  important  in  the  world.  The  enterprising  spirit  of  the  Cana- 
dian French,  in  their  expeditions  of  war,  of  traflic,  or  of  survey, 
bad  made  them  acquainted  with  extensive  regions  lying  around  the 
great  lakes,  and  the  streams  which  flow  into  them.  From  the  reports 
of  the  Indians  dwelling  in  those  remote  territories,  the  existence  of 
a  great  river  in  the  west  was  ascertained;  and  the  opinion  of  geo- 
graphers was  divided  as  to  the  probable  place  of  its  disembogue- 
ment.  It  was  thought  by  some  that  it  must  flow  into  the  Gulf  of 
California;  by  others,  into  the  Atlantic,  near  the  coast  of  Virginia; 
and  by  others,  on  better  grounds,  that  its  outlet  could  be  in  no 
other  region  than  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Under  the  enterprising  adrnliiistration  of  Count  Frontenac,  two 
men  were  found  daring  enough  to  attempt  the  task  of  its  discovery 
and  survey.  These  were  Father  Marquette,  a  missionary,  eminent 
for  his  piety  and  his  zeal  in  the  conversion  of  the  natives,  a  great 


430 


THE   PEOPLE'S    HOOK    OF   HISTORY, 


traveller,  and  familiar  with  their  languages,  and  M.  Joliet,  an  ad- 
venturous  citizen  of  Quebec.  With  five  other  Frenchmen,  on  the 
13th  of  May,  1673,  these  venturous  explorers,  in  two  canoes,  took 
their  dejiarture  from  the  remote  outpost  of  Michilimackinac.  Pass- 
ing the  tribes  of  the  "Folles  Avoincs"  or  Wild  Rice,  (so  called  from 
the  native  grain  on  which  they  chiefly  subsisted,)  the  voyagers 
received  many  warnings  from  that  friendly  people,  of  the  perils  to 
be  encountered  on  their  proposed  journey — "of  the  dangers  of  the 
river,  of  the  savage  tribes  which  dwelt  on  its  banks,  and  of  the  ter- 
rible monsters  (alligators)  which  swarmed  in  that  region  of  heat 
whither  it  flowed."  But  the  pious  father  only  replied,  that  he  had  no 
fear  of  these  terrors,  and  would  gladly  lay  down  his  life  to  further 
the  salvation  of  souls  in  those  distant  regions. 

Entering  Green  Bay,  at  the  north-west  of  Lake  Michip;an,  the 
adventurers  ascended  the  Fox  river,  and  found  friendly  entertain- 
ment among  the  Miamis,  a  people  already  in  a  degree  converted  by 
the  exertions  of  a  zealous  missionary,  the  Father  Allouez.  In  the 
centre  of  their  principal  village  was  a  largo  cross,  covered  with  oiler 
ings  to  the  Great  Spirit,  in  token  of  thankfulness  for  success  ju 
hunting.  On  the  10th  of  June,  the  associates  left  this  river,  and, 
guided  by  the  natives,  transported  their  canoes  to  another,  runnin" 
in  a  diflorent  direction,  which,  they  were  told,  would  lead  them  to 
the  Great  River,  the  object  of  their  search.  Down  this  stream  (the 
Wisconsin)  they  paddled  for  forty  leagues,  observing  deer  and  buf- 
falo on  the  banks,  and  on  the  17th  entered  the  nxajestic  "Meatc 
Cha-ssipi,"  or  Father  of  Waters,  which,  under  the  name  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, still  retains  nearly  its  original  native  appellation, 

Down  this  great  stream  they  floated  for  sixty  leagues,  without 
seeing  any  sign  of  human  habitation — landing,  toward  evening,  to 
cook  their  food,  and  anchoring  in  the  river,  for  security,  during  the 
night.  At  length,  seeing  foot-prints  on  the  shore,  they  landed,  and 
Marquette  and  Joliet,  following  a  path  which  led,  for  two  leagues, 
through  the  prairie,  came  to  three  villages  of  the  Illinois,  who  re- 
ceived  them  with  much  kindness.  The  pipe  of  peace  was  solemnly 
smoked,  presents  were  interchanged,  and  on  the  following  day  more 
than  six  hundred  of  this  friendly  people  accompanied  them  to  their 
canoes,  and  bade  them  adieu  with  every  token  of  good-will.  Pur- 
suing their  course,  they  beheld,  on  the  face  of  a  lofty  precipii'o, 
fronting  the  river,  and  apparently  inaccessible  to  man,  the  figures 
of  "two  monsters,''  painted  in  green,  red,  and  blue,  and  so  well  exc- 


THE   FRENCH  IN   AMERICA. 


-l.JL 


cuted  that  it  seemed  doubtful  if  they  were  the  work  of  savages. 
Those  effigies  are,  or  were  recently,  in  a  state  of  good  preservation. 

They  had  now  learned  of  the  existence  of  a  great  river,  called  the 
Pekitanoni,  or  Missouri,  flowing  into  the  Mississippi,  and  ere  long 
were  involved  in  its  turbid  flood,  which,  swelled  with  rains,  rushed 
furiously  down,  bearing  great  masses  of  driftwood.  From  a  village 
named  Oumissouri,  on  the  shore  of  this  stream,  its  present  name  is 
derived.  At  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  to  their  surprise,  they  found 
savages  armed  with  muskets,  which,  with  other  European  articles, 
the  Indians  said,  had  been  purchased  of  white  men  from  the  east. 
Entering  their  dwellings.  Father  Marquette  smoked  with  them  the 
calumet  of  peace,  as  usual,  and  gave  them  what  instruction  he  could 
in  Christianity.  Still  floating  southward,  about  the  thirty-third  de- 
gree of  latitude,  he  came  to  an  Indian  village,  named  Metchigamea. 
The  people  here  were  at  first  hostile,  but  being  propitiated  by  the  Un- 
failing calumet,  listened  to  such  religious  instruction  as  the  good  father 
was  able  to  impart.  Ten  leagues  below  this  place,  at  a  village  called 
Akamsca,  (Arkansas,)  he  was  informed,  by  the  aid  of  an  interpreter, 
tliat  the  sea  was  only  five  days  distant.  Concluding  that  the  object 
of  their  expedition  was  secured  by  this  supposed  ascertainment  of 
the  (lehouchement  of  the  stream  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  dread- 
ing the  cruelties  of  the  Spaniards  who  dwelt  upon  its  shores,  the 
explorers  thought  it  prudent  to  return. 

Ascendin"g  with  great  toil  and  difficulty  against  the  current,  they 
finiilly  came  to  the  Illinois  river,  up  which  they  passed  with  greater 
ease  to  Lake  Michigan,  where  they  arrived  in  September.  In  the 
four  months  which  they  had  consumed  in  their  arduous  expedition,  a 
vast  accession  had  been  made  to  geographical  knowledge,  and  the  way 
to  one  of  the  richest  and  most  valuable  regions  on  earth  had  been 
laid  open  to  mankind.  More  than  two  thousand  five  hundred  miles 
had  been  traversed,  in  their  frail  barks,  amid  a  thousand  dangers, 
by  these  adventurous  men.  Father  Marquette  drew  up  a  brief  nar- 
rative of  the  expedition,  and  constructed  a  map  of  the  route,  which 
represents,  with  tolerable  distinctness,  all  the  great  features  of  the 
river  and  the  country  he  had  explored. 

At  the  lake,  he  parted  from  Joliet,  who  hastened  with  the  tidings 
to  Quebec,  while  the  good  missionary  remained  with  his  savage 
friends.  "Indifferent  to  renown,  and  zealously  occupied  with  the 
salvation  of  souls,  he  again  took  his  way  to  the  wilderness,  and 
liusied  himself  as  a  missionary  among  the  Miamis.     Death  soon 


j, 


mm>m 


432 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


overtook  Inm  in  his  pioua  pilgrimage.  On  the  18th  of  May,  1675 
coasting  in  his  canoe  along  the  eastern  shore  of  Lake  Michigan  ho 
entered  a  small  river.  Here  he  landed,  built  an  altar,  and  performed 
the  mass,  saying  that  his  voyage,  he  believed,  was  destined  to  end 
there.  He  then  retired  into  the  wood,  desiring  his  two  companions 
to  leave  him  alone  for  the  space  of  half  an  hour.  At  the  end  of 
that  time  they  made  search,  and  fdbnd  the  good  father,  his  present- 
iment fulfilled,  lying  quietly  dead  in  the  shade  of  the  eternal  forest 
In  this  obscure,  but  not  unfitting  manner,  perished  a  man,  illustrious 
for  his  courage,  endurance,  and  enterprise,  and  endeared  to  remem- 
brance by  his  pious  and  philanthropic  labours  for  the  souls  of  his 
fellow-men." 

At  Quebec,  the  tidings  brought  by  Joliet  were  received  with 
extraordinary  enthusiasm,  and  the  achievement  of  the  two  associates 
was  justly  considered  the  greatest  and  most  important  discovery  of 
the  age.  All  day  the  bells  rang  aloud,  and  the  bishop  and  clergy 
with  all  the  authorities  of  the  city,  went  in  solemn  procession  to  the 
cathedral,  where  a  Te  Deum  was  sung,  and  a  high  mass  performed 
in  honour  of  the  memorable  occasion. 


oXlilxIJCiiU     lit, 


LA   SALLE:    HIS   ATTEMPTS  TO  REACH  CHINA. — GRANT  OP  THE 
KINO.  —  TONTI:    THEIR   EXPEDITION   TO   THE   WEST:   DISCON- 
CERTED   BY  TREACHERY. —  ACTUAL  AND  PRETENDED  DIS- 
COVERIES   OP    PATHER    HENNEPIN.  —  VOYAGE    OP    LA 
SALLE    TO    THE    OUTLET    OP    THE    MISSISSIPPI:     HE 
TAKES   POSSESSION    OP    THE    VALLEY.  —  THE    RE- 
TURN.—  IMITATION     OP     INDIAN     PEEOCITY. 


The  magnificent  enterprise  so  splendidly  commenced  by  Mar- 
quette, was  ere  long  completed  by  an  adventurer,  his  equal  in  cour- 
age, enthusiasm,  and  patient  endurance.  Robert  Cavalier,  Sieur  de  la 
Salle,  a  young  man  who  had  been  a  member  of  the  order  of  Jesuits, 
was  at  this  time  in  Canada,  engaged  in  the  undertaking  of  finding  a 
wasterly  pa.«3age  to  China.  lie  proceeded,  however,  on  this  chimer- 
icnl  expedition  no  further  than  the  spot  now  known  as  La  Cbine, 


THE   FUENCII   IN   AMERICA. 


'133 


(China,)  a  name  attesting  his  expectations  and  disappointment.  Be- 
coming possessed  with  an  eqtmlly  fallacious  idea  that  the  Missourii 
flowing  from  the  westward,  might  lead  him  to  the  desired  region, 
he  offered  his  services  to  Count  Frontenao,  who  advised  him  to  apply 
for  aid  at  the  court  of  France.  Accordingly,  he  repaired  thither, 
and,  by  the  favour  of  Colbert  and  the  Prince  de  Conti,  obtained  of 
Louis  the  desired  equipment.  The  command  of  Fort  Frontenao, 
and  a  monopoly  of  the  fur-trade  in  that  region,  were  likewise  granted 
to  him,  and  with  the  Chevalier  Tonti,  a  brave  Italian  officer,  with 
only  one  arm,  he  repaired  to  Quebec. 

Having  put  the  fort  in  a  state  of  defence,  the  adventurer  employed 
himself  in  building  a  vessel  and  in  making  explorations.  In  Sep* 
tember,  1679,  the  two  associates  went  on  board  of  her,  at  Lake  Erie, 
taking  forty-four  men — among  them,  "the  Reverend  Father  Henne- 
pin, famous  for  his  discoveries,  and  notorious  for  his  lies  and  impo- 
sitions." At  the  river  St.  Joseph,  on  Lake  Michigan,  La  Salle  built 
a  fort,  and  thence  passed  to  the  Illinois,  which  he  descended.  The 
country  proved  fertile  and  populous,  no  less  than  five  hundred 
houses  being  found  in  one  village,  and  the  savages  were  friendly 
and  hospitable.  The  treason  of  some  of  his  followers,  for  the  time, 
disconcerted  this  promising  enterprise,  and  nearly  resulted  in  the 
destruction  of  all  concerned.  A  verse  to  proceeding,  they  first  at- 
tempted to  excite  opposition  among  the  Indians,  by  insinuating  that 
La  Salle  was  a  spy  of  their  enemies,  the  Iroquois;  and  this  device 
proving  of  no  avail,  these  wretches  administered  poison  to  him  and 
his  chief  adherents,  at  a  Christmas  dinner.  By  the  timely  aid  of 
remedies,  the  sufferers  recovered,  and  their  intended  murderers  fled 
into  the  wilderness,  beyond  the  reach  of  pursuit.  Compelled,  by 
this  reduction  of  his  force,  to  return  to  his  posts  for  recruits,  La 
Salle  left  Tonti  in  command  of  a  small  fort  on  the  Illinois,  and  dis- 
patched Father  Hennepin,  with  fo^r  companions,  to  ascend  the 
Mississippi. 

That  enterprising  priest  succeeded  in  exploring  the  river  upward 
for  a  great  distance,  and  discovered  the  Falls  of  St.  Antony.  After 
enduring  great  sufferings,  and  being  detained  a  captive  among  the 
Sioux  Indians,  he  finally  made  his  way  back  to  Canada,  where  he 
published  an  account  of  his  explorations.  Years  afterwards,  when 
La  Salle,  the  true  surveyor  of  the  Mississippi,  was  dead,  he  put 
forth  another  version  of  the  affair,  in  which  he  claimed  that  he  had 
explored  that  river,  on  this  occasion,  to  its  outlet,  but  the  falsity  of 
Vou  IIL— 28 


434 


THK  I'KOPLK'S   HOOK   OF  HISTOKY. 


which  is  flufflcipntly  f  roved,  by  the  fuct  tlmt  ho  pretends  to  have 
ftflcended  it  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Illinois  river,  in  a  canoe 
with  only  two  men,  in  twenty-two  dftys.  So  notorious,  indeed  wat' 
his  bftd  fuith  in  these  transactionH,  tlint  hia  common  epithet  in  Can- 
nda,  wo  are  told,  was  "Z«  Qrand  Meutenr^^  (the  Great  Liar).  «'Bv 
this  impudent  fabrication,  he  secured  to  Ir  nself  a  reputation  some- 
what like  that  of  Veapucius,  whose  fruudulent  attempt  (or  that  of 
liis  admirers)  to  wrest  the  glory  from  a  true  discoverer,  obscures  the 
renown  of  his  real  and  meritorious  achievements." 

La  Snllo,  having  collected  twenty  men  at  his  posts,  resumed  his 
enterprisje,  and  on  the  2d  of  February,  1682,  embarked  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi. He  pa.«8ed  the  Missouri  and  the  Ohio,  as  well  as  the  Ar- 
kansas, the  termination  of  the  voyage  of  Marquette.  Tlic  river 
seemed  interminable  in  its  windings,  yet  he  kept  on,  and  was  kindly 
received  by  the  powerful  tribe  of  the  Natchez.  On  the  27th  of 
March  he  passed  the  mouth  of  Red  River,  and  on  the  7th  of  April 
arrived  at  that  strange  region,  neither  land  nor  water,  where,  through 
many  channels,  the  turbid  torrent  of  the  Mississippi  mingles  with 
the  gulf  "The  country  immediately  around  the  otitlet  of  this  vast 
stream  was  desolate  and  uninteresting.  Far  as  the  eye  could  reach. 
swampy  flats  and  inundated  morasses  filled  the  dreary  jjro.spect. 
Under  the  ardent  rays  of  the  tropical  sun,  noisome  vapours  exhaled 
from  the  rank  soil  and  sluggish  waters,  poisoning  the  breezes  from 
the  southern  seas,  and  corrupting  them  with  the  breath  of  pestilence, 
^fasses  of  floating  trees,  whose  large  branches  were  scatiied  by 
months  of  alternate  immersion  and  exj)o.sure,  during  hundreds  of 
leagues  of  travel,  choked  up  many  of  the  numerous  outlets  of  the 
river,  and,  cemented  together  by  the  alluvial  deposits  of  the  muddy 
stream,  gradually  became  fixed  and  solid,  throwing  ifp  a  rank 
vegetation."* 

The  discoverer,  exulting  in  the  completion  of  his  achievement, 
])rocecded  to  take  formal  possession  of  the  vast  regions  watenul  I'V 
the  river  he  had  explored — bestowing  on  them,  in  honour  of  his 
sovereign,  the  name  of  Louisiana.  From  the  top  of  a  high  tree  a 
cross  was  suspended ;  a  shield,  bearing  the  arms  of  France,  was  w  t 
up;  and  a  solemn  Te  Deum  was  chanted,  in  gratitude  to  Heaven  for 
the  success  of  this  memorable  enterprise.  The  more  important  ope- 
ration of  attempting  to  ascertain  the  latitude,  produced  a  result  en- 
tirely falkciotts. 

*  Warburton — "Conqucit  of  Canada." 


T II  K   F  R  K  N  C  H    I  N  A  M  K  It  I  C  A . 


4A5 


Returning  with  great  (lifT\culty  ngainHt  the  florco  current  of  the 
Misflifwippi,  swollen,  it  is  probable,  at  this  season,  with  floods,  the 
French  experienced  much  annoyance  from  the  attacks  of  the  treach- 
erous Quinipissos,  whose  hostility  they  had  already  tosted  in  coming 
down.  Having  slain  several  of  these  assailants,  the  adventurers; 
emulating  the  savage  custom  of  their  foes,  scalped  the  bodies,  and 
carried  off  the  usual  glinstly  trophies  of  Indian  warfare.  This?  fero- 
cious practice,  indeed,  seems  always  to  have  had  a  singular  fascina- 
tion for  men  once  thoroughly  committed  in  hostility  with  the  savages. 
Near  half  a  century  later,  if  the* old  ballad  may  V)e  trusted,  we  find 
the  English  (and  pspecially  their  chaplain,  the  Reverend  Mr.  Frye,) 
indulging  a  similar  taste  at  a  battle  on  the  frontier  of  Maine;  and, 
indeed,  at  a  much  later  date,  our  backwoodsmen  were  frequently  in 
the  habit  of  emulating,  in  this  respect,  the  most  barbarous  tribes 
which  they  encountered. 


CFfAPT17'R    TTT 

BXPEDITION   OP   LA   SALLE   BY   SEA    IN    QUEST   OP   THE   MISSIS- 

SII'PI.  —  HE  MISSES  THE   ENTRANCE.  —  LANDS   AT   THE   BAT 

OP  ST.   BERN  ARI).  —  POUNDS    A    COLONY. — MISFORTUNES 

AND  DISCOURAGEMENTS, HE  SETS  PORTH  OVERLAND 

POR  CANADA.  —  HIS  DEATH. PATE  OP  THE  SCRTIVORS 

OP  THE  E.XPEDITION.  —  OP  THE  COLONY  OP  ST.  LOUIS. 

Having  arrived  at  Quebec,  La  Salle,  unable  to  obtain  the  requi- 
site means  for  following  up  his  grand  discovery,  again  embarked  for 
France,  and  again  preferred  his  suit  at  the  court  of  Versailles.  Four 
vessels,  one  a  large  frigate,  were  placed  at  his  command,  and  with  a 
brother  and  two  nephews,  seven  priests,  a  number  of  artisans  and 
volunteers,  with  a  hundred  soldiers,  and  sufficient  crews,  in  all  two 
hundred  and  eighty  souls,  on  the  24th  of  July,  1684,  he  sailed  from 
La  Rochelle  for  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  The  sujlenness  and 
mutinous  disposition  of  Beaujeu,  the  captain  of  the  frigate,  at  an 
early  day,  produced  loss  and  trouble  to  the  expedition,  and  eventu- 
ated in  its  entire  discomfiture.  Arriving  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  the 
voyagers  searched  in  vain  for  the  expected  outlet     "Nothing  is 


436 


TUE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  E18T0KY. 


more  difficult  than  to  discover,  from  sea,  the  entrance  even  of  the 
largest  river,  on  an  unknown  coast,  unless  the  position  has  been 
accurately  determined  beforehand,  and  the  attempt  is  doubly  embar- 
rassing, where  the  stream,  like  that  of  which  he  was  in  search,  de- 
bouches, through  numerous  outlets,  upon  a  marshy  shore." 

Accordingly,  after  a  long  and  fruitless  search  for  the  desired 
entrance  (which,  it  seems,  they  passed  on  the  10th  of  January,  1685) 
Beaujeu,  disregarding  the  orders  of  La  Salle,  kept  westward  for  a  hun- 
dred leagues,  and  anchored  in  the  Bay  of  St.  Bernard,  not  far  from  the 
present  site  of  Galveston.  Finding  a  large  stream  flowing  into  this 
bay,  the  governor  supposed  that  it  might  be  one  of  the  western  mouths 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  concluded  to  make  a  landing.  His  expecta- 
tions, indeed,  had  been  miserably  disappointed  on  discovering  the 
nature  of  his  outfit.  The  alleged  artisans  proved  mere  impostors; 
the  soldiers  were  decrepid  and  worn-out  invalids,  disbanded  as  unfit 
for  service.  This  heterogeneous  and  ill-assorted  crowd,  to  the  number 
of  two  hundred  and  twenty,  being  landed,  Beaujeu  hastily  deserted 
them,  and  sailed  recklessly  away.  The  commander,  though  much 
discouraged  by  these  untoward  circumstances,  set  to"  work  and  built 
a  fort,  which  he  called  St.  Louis.  He  next  spent  four  months  in 
coasting  along  the  shore  with  canoes,  vainly  seeking  the  Mississippi, 
and  unable  to  obtain  any  information  from  the  unfriendly  savages. 
In  April,  he  set  forth  towards  New  Mexico,  in  hopes  of  discovering 
mines,  but  with  equal  ill-success. 

Tonti,  who  had  been  left  in  command  of  a  fort  on  the  Illinois, 
according  to  previous  agreement  with  La  Salle,  now  descended  the 
Mississippi  to  the  sea,  where  he  expected  to  And  his  associate  and 
the  projected  colony;  but,  after  searching  the  shores  of  the  gulf  for 
months  in  vain,  sadly  relinquished  the  attempt,  and  returned  to  his 
station  on  the  Illinois. 

The  unfortunate  little  colony  founded  by  La  Salle,  its  numbers 
diminished  by  losses  in  every  expedition,  was  fast  verging  to  ex- 
tinction. In  less  than  two  years  from  its  foundation,  only  thirty- 
seven  men  were  alive,  and  famine  and  Indian  hostility  threatened 
the  speedy  destruction  of  the  whole.  The  dauntless  commander,  his 
spirit  unbroken  by  misfortune  or  disappointment,  continued  to  pro- 
ject fresh  schemes  of  adventure  and  discovery.  With  sixteen  com- 
panions, on  the  12th  of  January,  1686,  he  set  forth  on  the  terrible 
enterprise  of  traversing  the  wilderness,  and  penetrating  over- 
Und  to  Canada.    Among  them  was  bis  young  nephew  Moranger, 


THE  FRENCH  IN  AMEEICA. 


457 


a  youth  of  haughty  temper,  who  incurred  the  enmity  of  the  rest,  and 
a  mutinous  spirit  soon  broke  out.  One  of  the  party,  named  Lancelot, 
two  days'  journey  from  the  fort,  being  taken  ill,  was  permitted  to 
return.  Hia  brother  earnestly  desired  to  bear  him  company,  but  La 
Salle  refused  to  allow  it,  on  account  of  the  weakness  of  his  force. 
The  invalid,  returning  alone,  was  murdered  by  the  Indians;  and  the 
Burvivipg  brother,  from  that  moment,  thought  only  of  revenge.  For 
two  months,  while  the  expedition  slowly  made  its  way  toward  Can- 
ada, he  nourished  schemes  of  vengeance,  without  the  opportunity  to 
put  them  in  execution.  With  his  accomplices,  he  then  commenced 
with  the  murder  of  Moranger ;  and  having  concealed  themselves  in  a 
cane-brake,  shortly  after,  they  fired  from  ambush  at  their  unfortunate 
commander.  He  fell  mortally  wounded,  and  presently  died,  on  the 
19th  of  May,  1686,  it  is  said,  near  the  western  branch  of  the  Trinity. 
"Thus  obscurely  perished  one  of  the  bravest  and  most  indefatigable 
of  the  many  brave  and  unconquerable  sp'ai^a  who,  at  the  cost  of  their 
lives,  have  won  renown  as  pioneers  in  the  iNew  World.  His  memory 
will  always  be  associated  with  the  great  river  which  he  explored  and 
laid  open  to  mankind." 

The  assassins,  to  avoid  the  vengeance  of  the  friends  of  their  victim, 
hastily  quitted  the  party,  and  struck  a  new  track  in  the  wilderness. 
They  all  perished,  either  at  the  hands  of  each  other,  or  of  the  hostile 
savages.  The  little  company  of  survivors,  now  reduced  to  seven, 
still  kept  on  their  toilsome  journey  to  the  north-east.  The  Indians 
through  whose  country  they  passed,  treated  them  kindly;  and  four 
months  after  the  death  of  their  commander,  they  arrived  at  the  con- 
fluence of  the  Arkansas  and  Mississippi.  Here,  to  their  surprise, 
they  found  a  cross,  which  had  been  set  up  by  certain  companions 
of  Tonti,  whom,  in  ascending  the  Mississippi,  he  had  left  at  this 
place.  Encouraged  by  this  solitary  sign  of  Christianity  and  civiliza- 
tion, they  pursued  the  journey  to  Canada,  and,  wonderful  to  state, 
finally  succeeded  in  reaching  it. 

The  miserable  remnant  of  the  colony,  left  by  La  Salle  at  Fort  St. 
Louis,  soon  perished  under  the  hostilities  of  the  tribes  surrounding 
that  little  station.  Five  children  only  were  spared,  who  afterwards 
falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Spaniards,  revealed  the  unhappy  fate 
of  the  settlement.  Of  the  two  hundred  souls  of  which  it  was  composed, 
these,  and  the  seveti  companions  of  La  Salle  who  made  their  way  to 
Canada,  alone  survived.  Such  was  the  miserable  result  of  the  first 
attempt  to  colonize  the  richest  and  most  valuable  region  of  all  North 


438 


THE  PEOPLE'S  BOOK  OF  UlflTOUY 


America — an  attempt,  unhappily,  only  the  prototype  of  successive 
efforts  in  the  same  direction.  The  colonization  of  Louisiana,  like 
that  of  its  neighbour,  Florida,  for  a  long  series  of  years  presents  little 
except  continually  renewed  misfortune,  suffering,  and  mortality. 


NBGLECT  OP  THE  MISSISSIPPI  TALLBT. — EXPEDITION  OF  LEMOINg 
D'IBERTILLE:    HE  FOUNDS  SETTLEMENTS  AT  BILOXI,  MOBII-E,  AND 
ISLE    DAUPHINE. — TONTI.  —  DNPR08PER0U8    CONDITION  OF 
LOUISIANA. — DEATH   OF   D'IBERVILLB. — HIS  BROTHER 
BIENVILLE. — CROZAT. — THE  MISSISSIPPI  COMPANY. 
— GREAT  IMMIGRATION,  SUFFERING,  AND  MORTAL- 
ITY.— NEW  ORLEANS  FOUNDED. — CONTINUED 
IMMIGRATION. — VAST  EXTENT  OF  LOUISIANA. 

For  ten  years  after  the  death  of  La  Salle  and  the  destruction  of 
his  colony,  the  French  made  no  attempt  to  settle  the  Mississippi  Valley 
— the  few  adventurous  voyagers  who  had  resorted  there  from  Canada 
betaking  themselves  to  hunting  and  to  traffic  in  furs,  and  gradually 
assimilating  with  the  Indians  in  character  and  habits.  In  1697 
Lemoine  D'Iberville,  a  brave  Canadian,  distinguished  for  his  naval 
services,  represented  to  the  court  of  France  the  importance  of  this 
neglected  region,  and  obtained  the  means  for  a  fresh  attempt  at  set- 
tlement on  the  Gulf.  With  two  vessels,  on  the  17th  of  October  of 
that  year,  he  set  sail  from  Rochefort,  and  directed  his  course  to  the 
Bay  of  Pensacola.  The  Spaniards  there  remonstrated  against  Lis 
alleged  intrusion,  yet  he  proceeded,  and  examined  the  harbour  of 
Mobile,  the  river  Pascagoula  and  the  Bay  of  Biloxi,  and  fuially 
arrived  at  tlv;  mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  The  certainty  of  this  dis- 
covery was  confirmed  by  the  extraordinary  incident  of  a  letter, 
written  by  Tonli  thirteen  years  before,  giving  an  account  of  the 
country,  with  most  valuable  directions,  being  preserved  by  the 
Indians,  and  handed  to  D'Iberville. 

lie  pas.«o(l  up  the  Mississippi,  and,  entering  the  outlet  still  bearing 
hid  name,  discovered  Lakes  Maurepa.s  and  Pontchartruin,  and  the 


THE   FFIiNOlI   IN   AMERICA. 


'il'.'J 


Bay  of  Biloxi.  Here  he ;  .  ided  a  small  settlement,  which,  however, 
on  account  of  the  disadvantages  of  the  site,  was  afterwards  removed 
to  the  Bay  of  Mobile,  and  thence  again  to  the  Isle  Dauphine,  where  it 
finally  found  a  resting-place.  A  fort  called  Balize  was  also  erected  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi ;  and  after  completing  these  and  other 
works  in  furtherance  of  colouization,  D'Iberville,  leaving  his  brothers 
Saurolle  and  Bienville  in  command,  proceeded  to  France  for  fresh 
assistance  in  his  enterprise.  In  December,  1699,  he  returned,  and 
soon  after  received  a  visit  from  the  brave  and  adventurous  Tonti, 
who,  having  heard  of  the  foundation  of  the  new  colony,  with  only 
seven  companions,  had  descended  the  Mississippi  to  greet  him.  After 
a  few  years  of  doubtful  prosperity,  a  terrible  fever  desolated  the  little 
colony,  carrying  off  Saurolle  and  eventually  D'Iberville,  and  leaving 
only  a  hundred  and  fifty-five  souls  alive.  These  were  in  a  misera- 
ble condition,  the  spots  on  which  they  were  located — Biloxi,  Isle 
Dauphine,  and  the  Balize — being  little  more  than  deserts.  The 
fruitless  search  for  gold  and  the  trade  in  furs  engrossed  their  atten- 
tion, to  the  neglect  of  husbandry  or  permanent  occupation  of  the 
country.  Bienville,  the  surviving  brother,  by  his  perseverance  and 
talent  for  command,  still  managed  to  sustain  the  feeble  interest  of 
France  in  these  distant  regions.  A  considerable  extent  of  the  vast 
wilderness,  now  so  populous,  was  surveyed.  Red  River  and  the 
Missouri  had  been  ascended  to  great  distances  by  enterprising  adven- 
turers, and  small  settlements  were  planted  on  the  Yazoo  and  the 
Washita. 

The  Protestant  exiles,  driven  from  their  homes  by  the  cruelty  of 
Louis  XIV.,  but  still  retaining  the  true  French  loyalty  and  affection 
for  their  country,  now  offered  that,  if  tolerated  in  the  exercise  of 
their  religion,  four  hundred  families  of  them  would  remove  to  Louis- 
iana. But  that  bigoted  sovereign,  by  nature  and  education  one  of 
the  vilest  and  most  tyrannical  that  ever  disgraced  a  throne,  replied 
"  that  he  had  not  expelled  them  from  his  kingdom  to  form  a  repub- 
lic of  them." 

By  1712,  there  were  only  twenty  families  in  Louisiana,  living  in  the 
most  abject  poverty,  and  destitute  of  the  means  of  escaping  from  their 
forlorn  situation.  In  that  year  Antoinc  Crozat,  who  had  amassed 
a  vast  fortune  by  trading  to  the  East  Indies,  purchased  from  the 
crown  a  grant  of  the  entire  country,  with  a  monopoly  of  commerce 
for  sixteen  years.  His  object  wjis  not  colonization,  but  contraband 
traffic  with  Mexico,  in  order  to  secure  a  return  of  the  precious  metals; 


440 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


and  this  project  failing,  from  the  dishonesty  of  his  agents,  in  1717 
he  transferred  his  privileges  to  that  famous  or  infamous  company 
whose  history,  both  in  Europe  and  America,  is  one  tissue  of  gross 
ignorance,  of  stupendous  fraud,  of  suffering,  and  of  ruin.  At  this 
time,  though  numerous  emigrants,  at  different  periods,  had  arrived 
the  whole  population — so  great  had  been  the  mortality — was  only 
seven  hundred. 

The  Mississippi  Company,  under  the  guidance  of  the  notorious  John 
Law,  had  procured  a  charter,  conveying  entire  control,  except  a  mere 
nominal  reservation  of  sovereignty,  over  the  ill-starred  province ;  and 
by  the  artful  management  of  that  subtle  schemer,  a  mania,  wilder 
than  had  ever  been  known  in  France,  was  excited  for  speculation  in 
the  new  enterprise.  Fabulous  stories  of  gold  and  silver  mines,  of 
unimaginable  riches,  were  eagerly  circulated:  the  stock  of  the  com- 
pany rose  enormously ;  and  an  immense  quantity  of  paper  money, 
amounting  to  more  than  two  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  was  put 
into  circulation.  The  history  of  the  wide-spread  ruin  and  national 
bankruptcy  in  which  France  was  involved  by  the  collapsing  of  this 
famous  bubble,  does  not  immediately  pertain  to  our  subject.  No 
single  scheme  of  speculation,  it  is  probable,  ever  entailed  such 
universal  misfortune  on  a  community. 

During  the  years  1717  and  1718,  the  company,  with  rash  and  indis- 
criminating  haste,  dispatched  to  Louisiana  several  thousand  emigrants, 
French  and  foreigners.  These  unfortunate  people,  crowded  on  ship- 
board,  ill  provided  with  food  and  necessaries,  arriving  at  their  place  of 
destination,  found  that  the  ports  of  Old  Mobile  and  the  Isle  Duuphiae 
were  completely  destroyed,  the  latter  in  consequence  of  the  accunm- 
lation  of  vast  sand-banks.  They  were  set  on  shore  at  Biloxi,  without 
provisions  or  means  of  future  support,  and  utterly  ignorant  ol"  the 
country  to  which  they  had  been  so  rashly  transported.  Crowded  ou 
this  barren  shore,  they  mostly  perished,  of  want,  exposure  and  dis- 
ease; and  the  few  who  survived  were  linally  transported  to  the  Missis- 
sippi. Discouraged  by  these  misfortunes,  and  regarding  the  laud  as 
better  fitted  for  a  penal  settlement  than  for  a  prosperous  colony,  the 
French  added  to  the  misery  of  the  unfortunate  few  who  still  inhab- 
ited Louisiana,  by  sending  out  none  but  convicts  and  felons  to  that 
miserable  country.  "  Uundreds,"  we  are  told,  "  of  the  most  degraded 
and  miserable  objects,  in  a  complete  state  of  nakedness,  presentod 
tlieinselves  at  some  Spanish  and  English  trading  posts;  others 
perished  of  a  disease  which  they  themselves  had  iutrudueed;  but 


THE  FBENOH  IN  AMERICA. 


411 


the  far  greater  number  wandered  througli  the  forests  until  hunger 
nnd  fatigue  terminated  their  wretched  lives."  The  very  soldiers  of 
the  garrisons,  at  one  time,  were  compelled  to  retreat  into  the  Indian 
villages,  to  avoid  perishing  of  hunger. 

Bienville,  to  whose  sanguine  energy  the  colony  was  mainly  in- 
debted for  its  preservation,  in  1718,  had  selected  the  site  of  New 
Orleans,  as  that  of  the  principal  settlement;  and  the  result  evinces 
his  foresight  and  judgment.  When,  in  1719,  the  Spaniards  rBtook 
Pensacola,  the  same  gallant  officer,  collecting  the  slender  force  of 
French  soldiers  in  Louisiana,  in  turn  expelled  them  from  that  settle- 
ment; and  after  a  series  of  protracted  hostilities,  in  which  it  changed 
hands  three  times  during  five  months,  retained  possession  of  the 
disputed  territory.  It  was,  however,  at  the  peace  of  1721,  restored 
to  Spain,  its  original  possessor. 

In  1720,  twelve  hundred  more  settlers  arrived  from  France;  and 
an  order  was  obtained  from  the  regent,  forbidding  the  transportation 
of  any  more  convicts  to  Louisiana.  Negro  slaves,  in  considerable 
numbers,  at  this  time,  were  imported.  A  great  scarcity  of  provi- 
eions,  produced  by  the  arrival  of  so  large  a  number  of  new  comers, 
induced  riots  and  great  trouble  in  the  colony,  and  when,  not  long 
afler,  a  ship,  expected  from  France  with  supplies,  arrived  with  fresh 
crowds  of  hungry  emigrants,  the  difficulty  was  increased.  Bienville, 
by  dispatching  a  vessel  to  St.  Domingo  for  provisions,  finally  relieved 
their  privations. 

In  1722,  the  explosion  of  the  bubble  so  artfully  blown  up  by  Law 
was  felt  in  the  distant  and  ill-founded  colonies  which  had  been  the 
pretext  for  its  formation ;  and  assistance,  even  misdirected  as  it  had 
been,  from  this  source,  was  cut  off.  M.  Duvergier,  appointed  by  the 
company  almost  supreme  director  of  affairs  in  Louisiana,  sought 
rather  the  extension  of  its  territory  than  the  improvement  of  its 
character  or  prosperity.  Over  how  vast  a  surface  of  country  the 
little  settlements  of  the  French  were  already  scattered  may  be  judged 
from  the  division  of  Louisiana,  which  was  made  about  this  time,  into 
nine  cantons — those  of  New  Orleans,  Biloxi,  Mobile,  Alibamons, 
Natchez,  Natchitoches,  Yazoos,  Arkansas,  and  Illinois,  each  under 
a  separate  judiciary.  Bienville  was  now  reinstated  in  office  as 
"President  of  the  Council,"  and  by  his  influence  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment was  fixed  at  New  Orleans,  then  a  small  village  of  two  hundred 
inhabitants.  Two  years  afterwards  (1724)  the  entire  population  of 
the  colony  amounted  to  five  thousand  souls.     In  1728,  Bienville, 


lU 


i  i 


442 


THE  PEOTLli'S  BOOK  OF  HISTORY. 


having  devoted  twenty-nine  years  of  his  life  to  the  care  of  this 
remote  province,  of  which  he  had  been  one  of  the  earliest  founders, 
returned  to  France,  leaving  M.  Perier  to  succeed  him  in  the  command. 


H08IILITT  OF  IHB  NATCHEZ. — THEIE  INJURIES.  —  TAIN  BB- 
MONSTRANCB. — PLAN  FOR  THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  FRENCH. 

MASSACRE  AT   FORT    ROSALIE. — CAMPAIGN    AGAINST 

THE  NATCHEZ.  —  FLIGHT  AND  FINAL  DESTRUCTION  OF 
THE  TRIBE.  —  WAR  WITH  THE  CHICASAWS. — DISAS- 
TROUS CAMPAIGN   OF   D'ARTEGRETTE  AND    BIEN- 
VILLE.— GREAT    LOSS    OF    THE     FRENCH     AND 
THEIR  ALLIES. — UNSATISFACTORY  RESULT 
OF  A  SECOND  CAMPAIGN. 


Thk  erection  of  Fort  Rosalie,  on  the  Mississippi,  was  viewed  with 
some  jealousy  by  the  Natchez,  a  powerful  tribe  of  neighbouring 
Indians;  injudicious  attempts  to  collect  tribute  had  given  them  ad- 
ditional offence;  and  in  alliance  with  the  Chicasaws  and  other  tribes 
of  Louisiana,  they  concerted  a  general  attack  on  the  French.  The 
latter,  having  succeeded  in  detaching  the  Choctaws  from  the  hostile 
league,  the  Chicasaws  also  deferred  their  intended  campaign,  but  the 
Natchez,  excited  by  fresh  injury,  rushed  at  once  into  a  war  of  exter- 
mination. Chepar,  the  commandant  of  the  fort  in  question,  wi.shing 
to  lay  out  a  plantation,  with  equal  cruelty  and  impolicy,  ordered  the 
chief  of  a  neighbouring  village  to  yield  it  up  for  his  use.  In  vain  did 
the  latter  remonstrate.  "When  you  and  your  brothers,"  he  said, 
"came  here  to  ask  us  for  land,  we  did  not  refuse  it;  there  was  enough 
for  you  and  for  us;  we  might  have  hunted  in  the  same  fore.sts,  and 
been  buried  in  the  same  place.  Why  will  you  drive  us  from  the  cabins 
where  we  have  received  you  with  kindness,  and  smoked  witli  you 
the  calumet  of  peace?"  The  commandant,  however,  was  blindly 
inexorable  in  his  demand;  and  the  injured  tribe,  in  clo.se  counoil, 
resolved  on  .signal  vengeance.  A  singular  device  for  ensuring  con- 
cert in  the  intended  assault  was  adopted — a  bundle  of  reeds  being 


THE   FRENCH   IN   AMERICA. 


4-13 


sent  to  each  of  the  allied  chiefs — one,  commencing  with  the  next 
new  moon,  to  be  drawn  daily  from  the  stock,  and  the  last  to  mark 
the  day  of  retribution. 

On  the  28th  of  November,  1729,  the  Indians,  each  bearing  his 
tribute  of  corn,  presented  themselves  before  the  fort  Permitted  to 
enter,  in  great  numbers,  without  any  precaution,  they  dispersed 
themselves  through  the  fortress  and  among  the  dwellings;  and  at  a 
given  signal,  raising  their  tomahawks,  fell  on  the  garrison,  and  com- 
mitted an  indiscriminate  slaughter.  Taken  by  surprise,  nearly  all 
the  Frenchmen  were  put  to  death;  eighty  women  and  a  hundred 
and  fifty  children  were  made  prisoners;  and  the  negro  slaves  joined 
the  ranks  of  the  assailants.  Seven  hundred  of  the  French,  it  is  said, 
thus  perished  at  a  single  blow;  and  the  Yazoos,  emulating  the 
example  of  their  Natchez  allies,  surprised  the  fort  in  their  territory, 
and  put  all  its  tenants  to  death. 

The  French,  burning  for  revenge,  first  massacred  a  company  of 
Chonchas,  dwelling  near  New  Orleans,  who  were  put  to  death  by 
the  negro  slaves,  with  great  cruelty.    The  Choctaws,  enraged  at  the 
engrossment  of  spoil  by  the  Natchez,  now  proffered  their  servic^is  to 
Perier,  and  twelve  hundred  of  them,  commanded  by  a  Frenchman, 
were  dispatched  against  Fort  Rosalie,  which  the  Natchez  had  recon- 
structed and  oecupied.    This  army  defeated  them,  with  the  loss  of 
eighty  warriors,  and  recovered  fifty  of  the  women  and  children.    A 
force  of  colonists,  of  equal  number,  provided  with  artillery  and 
attended  by  a  body  of  friendly  Indians,  soon  followed,  and  for  sev- 
eral days  the  assault  was  fiercely  pressed,  the  besieged  defending 
themselves  with  great  resolution.     Terms  of  capitulation  were  finally 
agreed  on,  and  the  rest  of  the  prisoners  were  restored;  but  the 
Natchez,  seeing  that  Loubois,  the  French  commander,  intended  to 
break  faith  with  them,  privately  escaped  by  night  across  the  river, 
and  a  portion  of  them  joined  the  Chicasaws.     The  rest  of  the  fugitive 
tribe,  having  concealed  themselves  in  the  woods  near  Black  River, 
were  pursued  by  Perier,  the  governor,  in  the  winter  of  1731,  and 
were  mostly  killed,  in  attempting  to  escape  from  their  fort,  or  were 
forced  to  surrender.    The  prisoners  were  sent  to  St.  Domingo  and 
sold  as  slaves.     The  remainder  of  the  tribe,  on  learning  these  disas- 
trous tidings,  fell  with  great  fury  on  the  Tunicas  and  other  Indian 
allies  of  the  French,  and  committed  much  slaughter  among  them; 
but  finally  attacking  a  French  fort,  were  repulsed  with  severe  loss, 
their  chief,  the  Great  Sun,  being  among  the  killed.     The  few  sur- 


I 


I' 


444 


THE   PEOPLE'S   BOOK   OF   IIISTOUY. 


vivors  of  this  once  powerful  tribe  took  refuge  among  the  Chicasaws 
and  other  nations,  by  whom  they  were  adopted;  and  the  name  of 
the  Natchez,  as  a  people,  became  extinct;  though,  like  that  of  Tusca- 
loosa, of  Mauvila,  and  many  another  euphonious  Indian  title,  still 
perpetuated  in  the  appellation  of  a  modern  city. 

In  1732,  the  Mississippi  Company  abandoned  their  charter,  leaving 
Louisiana  with  a  population  of  about  five  thousand  white  inhabitants 
and  half  that  number  of  blacks.  The  prosperity  of  the  colony 
despite  its  terrible  misfortunes  and  losses,  was  now  settled  on  a  per- 
manent base — agriculture,  which  in  those  fertile  regions  so  amply 
repays  the  planter,  having  become  its  principal  occupation.  Indian 
hostilities,  however,  with  hardly  an  interval  of  peace,  were  presently 
resumed.  The  Chicasaws  had  afforded  an  asylum  to  the  Yazoos, 
to  the  survivors  of  the  Natchez,  and  to  the  runaway  negroes;  nay, 
they  even  hatched  a  plot  for  the  destruction  of  the  white  settlements 
by  exciting  an  insurrection  of  the  slaves.  Other  acts  of  open  hos- 
tility were  c(5mmitted,  and  Bienville,  who  in  1785  returned  and 
resumed  the  office  of  governor,  perceived  the  necessity  of  conciliation 
or  war.  All  his  efforts  at  the  former  having  failed,  he  sent  for 
D'Artegrette,  the  commandant  of  Fort  Chartres,  on  the  Illinois,  to 
join  him  with  all  his  available  force.  That  officer,  already  distin- 
guished for  his  activity  in  the  war  with  the  Natchez,  with  a  force  of 
twelve  hundred  men,  mostly  Illinois  Indians,  rapidly  descended  the 
Mississippi,  and  marched  into  the  country  of  the  hostile  nation.  The 
Chicasaws  were  well  entrenched,  and  were  commanded  by  English 
officers.  D'Artegrette,  after  waiting  ten  days  in  vain  for  Bienville, 
attacked  them,  but  after  taking  two  of  their  forts,  was  wounded  and 
taken  prisoner,  with  several  of  his  friends.  The  Illinois  iled,  and 
Bienville,  arriving  just  too  late,  attacked  a  fort  defended  by  a  body 
of  English,  before  which,  it  is  said,  he  lost  two  thousand  of  his  fol- 
lowers, and  was  compelled  to  make  a  miserable  retreat,  marching  for 
a  hundred  miles  without  food,  and  the  enemy  being  in  hot  pursuit. 
The  unfortunate  D'Artegrette  and  his  fellow-prisoners,  after  tae 
defeat  of  their  friends,  were  tortured  to  death  at  the  stake,  after  the 
customary  cruelty  of  the  savages. 

In  1739,  Bienville,  acting  in  concert  with  Beauharnois,  the  gov- 
ernor of  Canada,  and  aided  by  a  strong  force  of  French  and  Indians 
from  that  province,  set  forth  on  a  fresh  campaign  against  the  Chica- 
saws. The  united  forces  of  the  two  colonies,  amounting  to  three 
thousand  six  hundred  men,  of  which  one-third  were  Europeans, 


THE  FRENCH  IN   AMEKICA. 


446 


rendezvoused  in  August  at  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Memphis. 
After  building  a  fort,  named  L'Assomption,  a  series  of  misfortunes 
overtook  them  in  the  failure  of  provisions,  the  excessive  heat,  and  a 
fatal  disease,  which  carried  off  numbers  of  them  and  disabled  many 
of  the  survivors.  Nevertheless,  a  considerable  body  of  the  army 
advancing  toward  the  Chicasaw  country,  that  people,  struck  with 
dismay,  made  overtures  of  peace,  alleging,  in  apology,  that  they  had 
been  excited  to  hostility  by  the  English  of  Carolina.  They  gave  up 
two  of  the  latter  who  were  among  them;  and  a  treaty  being  con- 
cluded, the  pipe  of  peace  was  solemnly  smoked  and  the  tomahawk 
formally  buried.  Nevertheless,  the  Chicasaws  still  continued  after- 
wards to  give  much  trouble  to  the  French,  and,  assisted  by  their 
English  Ulies,  maintained  possession  of  a  very  extensive  territory. 


rnADTTD      12*  T 

\j  11  R  i  I  ill  i\    VI. 

PROSPERITY  OF  LOUISIANA.  —  UNDISTURBED  BY  WAR. — SUGAR 
CANE   INTRODUCED. — COMMENCEMENT   OP  TROUBLES   WITH 
THE  ENGLISH. — THE  OHIO  COMPANY. — RESISTED   BY  DU 
QUESNE.  —  THE  VIRGINIA   EXPEDITION   UNDER  WASH- 
INGTON.-;-W  A  R  WITH  THE  FRENCH  OF  CANADA,  ETC. 
— TAKING  OF  FORT  DU  QUESNE. — OVERTHROW  OF 
THE    FRENCH     IN     CANADA.  —  PUBLIC     RELIN- 
QUISHMENT OF  A  PART  OF  LOUISIANA  TO  ENG- 
LAND,   AND   SECRET   CESSION   OP    THE   RE- 
MAINDER TO  SPAIN.  —  VAIN  REMONSTRANCE. 

In  the  year  1741,  Bienville,  who  for  so  many  years  had  held  com- 
mand of  the  province,  to  the  regret  of  all  the  inhabitants,  took  his 
final  departure.  The  country,  however,  continued  to  prosper,  and 
commerce,  freed  from  restrictions,  began  to  assume  some  importance. 
The  obstinate  warfare  waged  between  the  English  colonies  and  the 
Canadian  French,  at  this  time,  did  not  much  affect  the  tranquillity 
of  the  remote  province  of  Louisiana.  In  1751,  a  most  valuable 
accession  to  the  wealth  of  the  country  was  made,  in  the  introduction 
of  the  sugar-cane,  which  certain  Jesuits  of  St.  Domingo  sent  to  their 
brethren  on  the  Mississippi,  and  which,  in  our  own  day,  has  a^Hiuned 


y 


446 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF   IIISTOP.Y. 


the  first  importance,  as  the  staple  of  that  productive  region  whicli 
fringes  its  shores. 

In  the  following  year,  the  Chicasaws  having  recommenced  their 
ravages,  Vaudreuil,  the  successor  of  Bienville,  marched  against  them 
with  a  force  of  seven  hundred  French  soldiers  and  a  large  body  of 
Indian  allies.  He  laid  waste  their  country,  and  left  an  additional 
force  at  the  Fort  of  Tombeckbee,  to  keep  them  in  check,  but,  for 
want  of  artillery,  was  unable  to  take  their  fortified  places. 

The  provinces  of  Canada  and  Louisiana,  nearly  as  distant  from 
each  other  as  from  the  mother-country,  had  now,  with  admirable 
military  skill,  been  almost  completely  connected  by  a  chain  of  posts 
extending  from  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence  to  that  of  the  Missis- 
sippi. The  extent  of  country  over  which  the  French  asserted  their 
claim,  and  great  part  of  which,  however  sparsely,  they  occupied 
was  vastly  greater  than  that  of  their  neighbours,  the  powerful  Eng- 
lish colonies — though  the  population  of  the  latter  now  exceeded  a 
million,  while  that  of  both  the  French  provinces  was  but  little  more 
than  a  twentieth  of  that  amount.  It  may  well  be  supposed  that  tlie 
former,  so  long  and  obstinately  striving  to  wrest  Canada  from  the 
few  but  valiant  hands  which  held  it,  would  not  entirely  overlook 
the  far  richer  and  more  feebly-defended  regions  of  Louisiana. 

After  the  conclusion  of  peace  between  the  rival  nations,  in  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  an  a<wociation,  called  the  Ohio 
Company,  had  obtained  from  the  English  crown  a-  large  grant  >  i' 
land  lying  within  a  district  to  which  both  had  laid  claim.  The 
governor  of  Canada,  Du  Quesne,  having  remonstrated  in  vain  against 
its  occupation,  made  prisoners  of  the  company's  servants;  and  pro- 
ceeded vigorously  in  the  work  of  completing  his  cordon  of  military 
posts.  In  1754,  the  province  of  Virginia  dispatched  Washington, 
then  a  young  officer  of  twenty-one,  with  a  provincial  regiment,  to 
check  what  was  in  turn  considered  an  encroachment  on  its  territorial 
right;  and  in  a  skirmish  with  the  French,  thecommander  of  a  small 
force  of  that  people,  with  ten  of  his  men,  was  killed.  The  Virgin- 
ians, entrenching  themselves  against  a  larger  force,  were  in  turn 
compelled  to  capitulate.  War  was  at  once  vigorously  rgcom- 
menced,  the  eventful  progress  of  which  against  the  French  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  Canada  has  been  already  detailed.  In  1758,  the  year 
before  the  fall  of  Quebec,  F'ort  Du  Quesne,  the  connecting  link 
l^ctween  the  two  French  provinces,  was  taken  by  the  English,  the 
garri.son  setting  it  on  fire,  and  escaping  in  boats  down  the  Ohio,  and 


^      \ 


THE  FRENCH  I^   AMERICA. 


447 


proceeding  to  New  Orleans,  The  victors  rSbuilt  it,  and  named  it 
after  the  celebrated  minister  then  at  the  head  of  British  affairs;  and 
at  the  present  day,  under  the  name  of  Pittsburgh,  it  is  one  of  the 
most  flourishing  cities  of  the  interior  of  America. 

With  the  capture  of  Quebec  and  the  overthrow  of  their  power  in 
Canada,  the  French  seem  to  have  lost  that  enterprising  spirit,  which, 
with  such  feeble  means,  had  brought  such  immense  territories  under 
tlieir  sway ;  and  Louisiana,  its  wealth  and  resources  not  yet  appre- 
ciated, was  regarded  as  only  the  poor  remnant  of  a  once  powerful 
French-American  empire.  At  the  treaty  of  Paris,  which  soon  fol- 
lowed that  event,  they  yielded  to  the  English  nearly  all  east  of  the 
Mississippi,  reserving  only  the  island  of  New  Orleans,  and  making 
that  river,  with  Lakes  Pontchartrain  and  Maurepas,  the  boundary 
between  the  possessions  of  the  two  nations.  By  the  surrender  of 
Acadia,  Canada,  and  other  northern  possessions,  the  population  of 
Ijouisiana  received  a  considerable  accession — many  of  the  French 
colonists,  expelled  from  their  homes,  or  declining  the  rule  of  strangers, 
taking  refuge  there. 

A  far  heavier  blow  to  the  nationality  of  the  diminished  province 
followed  si)eedily  afterwards.  By  a  secret  article  of  the  treaty  of 
Paris,  Louis  XV.  had  agreed  to  surrender  the  remainder  of  Louis- 
iana to  Spain,  as  a  compensation  for  the  loss  of  Florida,  which  the 
latter  had  been  compelled  to  cede  to  England.  For  some  time  this 
arrangement  was  kept  private,  but  when  it  eventually  transpired, 
tlie  unfortunate  colonists  were  seized  with  dismay  and  mortification. 
In  the  general  grief  and  excitement,  all  occupations  were  abandoned, 
and  at  a  meeting  of  the  most  respectable  inhabitants  of  the  province, 
at  New  Orleans,  it  was  resolved  to  remonstrate  strongly  with  the 
home  government.  M.  Milhet,  the  wealthiest  and  most  influential 
merchant  of  that  city,  was  dispatched  to  France,  and  with  the  aid 
of  the  aged  Bienville,  then  eighty-seven  years  old,  but  still  warmly 
attached  to  the  colony  he  hod  founded,  pressed  his  suit  with  the 
Duke  de  Choiseul.  But  that  minister,  who  was  himself  the  author 
of  the  obnoxious  measure,  parried  all  his  attempts,  and  the  unfortu- 
nate envoy  could  not  even  obtain  an  audience  with  the  king. 


i  n 


I 


m 


TtJ  rCOPLI'B   BOOK  or   UIBTORY. 


CHAPTER   VIL 

i^ElVir  OP   UlLOA    A.    SPANISH   OOTBRNOR:    HIS  0B8TINACT 

#)•  BXPUi-SION   PROM  THK   OOUNTBT.  —  ARRIVAL  OF  O'RBILLT: 

nil  <  i^flbY  AND  CRUBLTT.  — f 'TB  CITIZBN8  BXKCOIKD. 

—  T^MJNNT  OF  O'RBILLY. — ORBAT  BMIORATION    FROM 

LOUISIANA;   THAT  PROYINCB   RiCBDBD  TO   FRANCB: 

SOLD    BT    NAFOLBON    TO   THl    UNITBD  8TATB8. 


A  TEAR  after  the  treaty,  D'Abbadie,  the  governor  of  Louisiana, 
had  received  orders  from  hia  court  to  surrender  that  province  to  any 
Spanish  officer  empowered  to  receive  it;  yet,  singular  to  state, 
whether  from  policy  or  mere  carelessness,  two  more  years  elapsed 
before  any  such  claimant  appeared.  The  unfortunate  colonists  were 
beginning  to  cherish  the  hope  that  they  might  yet  be  spared,  when 
the  return  of  Milhet,  with  an  account  of  his  failure,  and  the  reeep- 
tion  of  a  letter  from  Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa,  announcing  his  arrival 
ns  Sjianish  governor,  (1766,)  put  an  fend  to  these  fallacious  expecta- 
tions. The  citizens,  exasperated  at  being  thus  involuntarily  trans- 
ferred to  a  foreign  power,  now  resolved  on  opposing  it  to  the  extent 
of  their  feeble  ability;  and  Lafreniorc,  tie  attorney-general,  encour- 
aged this  spirit  of  resistance,  citing  the  example  of  the  English  North 
American  colonies,  then  just  involved  in  controversy  with  the 
mother-country.  It  was  strenuously  demanded  of  the  council  that 
they  sliould  warn  Ulloa  to  quit  the  country.  That  officer,  who  had 
landed,  with  only  two  companies  of  infantry,  at  New  Orleans,  did 
not  for  some  time,  it  seems,  aim  at  any  thing  more  than  a  species  of 
toleration  of  his  presence  there.  The  force  he  brought  was  large 
enoii^h  to  excite  odium,  but  not  awe  in  the  people;  and  the  yellow 
fever,  which  now  for  the  first  time  made  its  appearance  in  New 
Orleans,  and  which  was  ascribed  by  the  eitizens  to  the  comi»<y  v-f  t'  «..' 
intruders,  increased  the  popular  ill-wiil.  As  yet  Ulloa  Ki<I  ,  , 
duced  no  credentials  of  authority  to  the  French  officia.^,  ^.ai  the 
council,  pressed  by  public  opinion,  at  length,  in  1767,  demanded 
that  he  should  present  them  or  quit  the  country.  With  true  Sjmn- 
i.«li  o\iHv.  ?y,  not  having  sufficient  force  to  compel  obedience,  he 
prefernd  (■      'c  .^r,  and  embarked  on  board  a  vessel  of  his  own 


TlIK  FREITCH  IN   AMERICA. 


449 


country.  Tlio  snino  night  lier  cables  were  out  by  n  party  of  gay 
yuuiig  Frc'iiclimcn,  excited  by  wine,  ax\d  she  dnlto'l  down  the  Htreiun. 
AlttT  his  (h'piirturo,  the  citizens  con\oiici],  and  dispalciu'd  envoys 
to  tlie  Krencli  court  with  l'renh  reincMHtrances  agiiinst  their  expatria- 
tion, l)Ut  in  vain;  and  in  July,  17(57,  tlu  y  lonrned  uitli  consternation 
tliiit  the  Spanish  captain-gentral,  O'Ueilly,  (an  Irishman  by  birth,  a 
Simniard  by  clioice,)  with  a  force  of  about  live  thousand  men,  had 
entovcd  the  Mississippi.  Uofi)ro  such  an  ovcrwhelniini^'  demonstra- 
tion, the  feeble  province  had  no  resource  but  submisHion;  liiid 
deiiutics  W'rc  accordingly  dispatched  with  it  to  O'Ueilly.  That 
pcrflviK  u'  lorr^nandcr  received  them  with  much  courtesy,  and  as- 
Bi;ivd  tlicm  but. I  of  amnesty  for  past  olU'iices,  and  a  mild  and  paternal 
g  v.;r  '  Mit  for  the  future.  Neverlheless,  lie  cherished  a  deadly 
hatred  against  the  French,  which,  superadded  to  natural  arrogance 
and  cruolty,  was  not  long  in  making  its  murderous  manifestation. 

Tuk'.iig  on  himself  all  the  state  and  mock  royalty  of  a  petty  sover- 
eign, he  soon  had  under  arrest  a  nun\ber  of  the  most  prominent 
citizens  in  the  state,  especially  those  connected  with  the  late  demon- 
stration of  resistance.  Lafreniero  and  four  others,  after  the  travesty 
of  a  trial,  were  sentenced  to  be  hung;  but  were  finally  executed  by 
shooting — a  fate  which  they  met  with  much  courage  and  magnanim- 
ity. Six  others  were  sentenced  to  imprisonment  for  life  or  for  a 
term  of  y 'jars,  and  were  presently  consigned  to  the  dungeons  of  the 
Moro,  at  Havana.  In  open  infraction  of  the  treaty,  the  tyrant  then 
jirocceded  arbitrarily  to  change  the  form  of  government,  which,  by 
that  instrument,  had  been  assuriid  to  tiie  province,  and  to  substitute 
the  laws  of  Castile  for  those  of  France.  The  people,  unable  to  resist 
these  oppressions,  rendered  a  sullen  submission.  The  greater  part 
of  the  wealthy  and  enter[)rising  portion  of  the  population  had  already 
taken  refuge  in  St.  Domingo,  whence,  a  few  years  afterwards,  the 
tide  of  fugitives,  driven  by  servile  insurrection,  was  destined  again 
to  flow  to  Louisiana.  This  emigration  was  finally  stopped  by  an 
order  of  the  governor,  lest  his  territories  should  be  utterly  depopu- 
lated. In  1770,  he  took  his  departure,  and  the  province  was  annexed 
to  the  captain-generalship  of  Cuba.  Ilis  successor  in  t!ie  adminis- 
tration. Nuzaga,  governed  kindly  and  well,  and  the  colony,  though 
restricted  in  its  commerce,  enjoyed  some  dcg.*ee  of  prosperity. 

It  jnly  remains  to  notice  the  final  transfer  of  this  valuable  terri- 
tory, together  witli  the  brief  reestabiishment  of  its  French  nationality. 
By  tlie  treaty  of  18(X),  Spain  had  agreed  to  restore  Louisiana  to 
Vol.  Ill  -2i) 


ikM ' 


450 


THE  PEOPLE'S   BOOK  OF  IIISTOKY, 


France;  but  this  article,  for  reasons  of  state,  was  kept  secret  until 
1803,  when,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  colonists,  who  had  never  relin- 
quished their  attachnicut  to  the  parent-country,  it  was  made  public. 
But  the  United  States,  having  a  foP"  deeper  interest  at  stake  tlian 
either  of  the  foreign  powers  which  thus  transferred  the  province 
from  hand  to  hand,  lost  no  time  in  opening  negotiations  with  the 
French  government  for  its  cession  to  their  own  jurisdiction.  Napo- 
leon, aware  of  the  difficulty  (considering  the  inferiority'  of  the  French 
marine  to  the  English,)  in  retaining  this  distant  territory,  was  not 
unwilling  to  see  it  transferred  into  the  hands  of  a  friendly,  or  at 
least  neutral  power,  rather  than  be  exposed  to  capture  by  the 
enemy.  Accordingly,  on  the  30th  of  April,  1803,  a  treaty  was 
signed,  by  which  the  United  States  were  to  acquire  the  whole  of 
Louisiana,  paying  the  inconsiderable  sum  of  fifteen  millions  of 
dollars,  and  admitting  the  vessels  of  France  and  Spain,  duty  free, 
for  twelve  years,  into  the  ports  of  that  province.  An  fticle  of  this 
instrument,  drawn  up  by  the  hand  of  the  First  Consul  himself,  as- 
sured the  inhabitants  of  full  equality  with  all  other  citizens  of  the 
Union,  and  provided  for  their  speedy  incorporation  into  the  confed- 
eracy. In  delivering  the  document,  he  remarked,  "^^ake  it  known 
to  the  people  of  Louisiana  that  we  regret  to  part  with  them ;  that 
we  have  stipulated  for  all  the  advantages  they  could  desire;  and 
that  France,  in  giving  them  up,  has  ensured  to  them  the  greatest  of 
all.  They  could  never  have  prospered  under  any  European  govern- 
ment as  they  will  when  they  become  independent.  But,  while  they 
enjoy  the  ])rivileges  of  liberty,  let  them  remember  that  they  are 
French,  and  j)rescrve  for  their  mother-country  that  affection  which 
a  common  origin  inspires." 

On  tlie  oOtli  of  November,  1803,  the  Spanish  commissio  lers  gave 
formal  possession  of  the  country  to  the ,  French  prefect,  Laussat 
presenting  liim  with  the  keys  of  the  capital.  For  thirty-four  years 
it  had  lieen  under  j)ossession  of  tlie  Sjianiards,  but  had  in  no  degree 
lust  its  nationality  or  affection  for  tlie  parent-country.  For  twenty 
days  the  tri-coloured  flag,  displayed  with  a  melancholy  jileasure, 
waved  over  the  recovered  city,  the  last  of  those  splendid  possessions 
once  held  by  the  French  in  North  America.  At  the  end  of  that 
time  (I)ccend)er  20th)  it  was  lowered,  and  replaced  by  the  stripe.s 
and  stars,  and  (piiet  possession  of  the  territory  was  taken  by  the 
United  States'  authorities. 


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